Haunted
by KitoraSohma
Summary: Tsukiko Amaya was abandoned by the one she loved more than anyone else, left to take care of what remains of her broken family, as well as her responsibilities to the Leaf. But when everything goes wrong, will she discover what it truly means to protect? Itachi x oc, follows the canon storyline
1. Prologue

_There was a time, many years ago, when the Five Shinobi Villages did not exist, and bloodshed ruled in their place. War raged constantly between different clans, and many innocent lives were lost in the flames of hatred. All over, shinobi fought viciously for power, but none so fiercely as the Uchiha, and the Senju._

 _The Uchiha clan was blessed with a unique fighting ability, a kekkei genkai called the Sharingan. This ocular jutsu allowed users to see through the techniques of their opponents, and often led to a swift defeat by copying their opponent's jutsu, or trapping them in powerful genjutsu._

 _There were other clans with other formidable skills, such as the Hyuga clan, whose Byakugan was highly regarded for the ability to see chakra points and across long distances, but there was one particular clan that proved to be a threat to the others, despite a relatively passive history in the bloody ninja world._

 _The Amaya clan also possessed a singular ocular jutsu. The Gensogan, as it was called, allowed the user to wield the elements as easy as they breathed, giving them command over nature itself._

 _While other ninja used jutsu or complicated techniques, Gensogan users simply waved their hands. They needed very little chakra and wielded with absolute control to accomplish incredible feats._

 _Needless to say, despite the relatively small size of the clan, and the even smaller number that could use the Gensogan, the other clans saw them as a threat that needed to be eliminated. The Amaya clan's small size left it open to attack by numerous foes, but they always seemed to somehow scrape by, gaining more and more prestige with each unwanted battle._

 _Until the Uchiha clan attacked._

 _Led by Madara Uchiha, the fiercest of his clan, the Sharingan and Gensogan clashed repeatedly, hacking away at the other a little bit at a time. It took far longer than Madara expected, for he had heard that the Amaya were relatively peaceful unless provoked. In his mind, that equated to a fundamental weakness within them that would be quickly snuffed out by his battle-worn clan._

 _As the conflict raged on, the sheer size of the Uchiha clan proved to be too great, and the Amaya clan too few. They were all but obliterated, a few managing to escape Madara's vengeful gaze, but none with the Gensogan. It had been wiped out of existence._

 _Vowing revenge, the Amaya remnants joined the Uchiha clan's sworn enemy, the Senju. The Senju welcomed them with open arms, hoping that one of the remnants would possess the Gensogan and give them an edge. Despite this never happening, the Amaya shinobi proved to be fierce fighters with unconventional techniques that often turned the tides of war to their favor._

 _And yet, the war was a never-ending entity, fueled by hatred and bloodshed that continued to cycle in on itself. Hashirama Senju saw this as an opportunity for peace and extended an olive branch to the Uchiha, with the idea of creating a ninja village in the Land of Fire._

 _Weary of the fight, the Uchiha accepted, and Konohagakure, the Village Hidden in the Leaves, was born, with Hashirama Senju named the First Hokage. He later went on to defeat Madara Uchiha, the only one who wanted the war to continue, and created peace in the Land of Fire. Soon, other clans followed their lead, and the Five Lands soon had five Villages, each headed by a Kage, to protect them. And so, peace was born, and any war or conflict seemed a minor event compared to the maelstrom of violence from before._

 _But what of the Amaya Clan?_

 _After the death of Madara Uchiha, the one that had ordered the attack on their clan, they accepted the peace and became a part of the Village, working to strengthen the bonds between the different clans that made up Konoha's shinobi._

 _But there was one couple who lived in fear. Their son, Akihiro, was a direct descendant of Gensogan users, and showed some of the traits of these gifted fighters. While he himself didn't possess the kekkei genkai, it was all but a guarantee that someone in his line would possess the jutsu. Afraid of Akihiro's white hair and powerful chakra that marked his family's history, they fled Konoha when the boy turned thirteen, leaving the calculating gaze of the Uchiha clan behind them._

 _Akihiro eventually grew to adulthood in a small secluded village and showed his merit as a powerful shinobi. He traveled for many years, trying to understand his family's history, before settling down and having children of his own. And they had children, and their children had children, each possessing either the onyx eyes or white hair that marked a Gensogan user, but never both._

 _Until, one hot summer's night, during the Third Great Ninja War, two parents shielded their nearly-born daughter from the shocked and scared faces of the medical ninja surrounding them. Their daughter, Tsukiko, the great-great-granddaughter of Akihiro Amaya, watched them calmly through intelligent onyx eyes, her white hair a stark contrast to the darkness of the room._


	2. Chapter 1

"Hurry, Sasuke!" Tsukiko called waving a spatula irritably at the closed sliding door that marked the young ninja's door. "You're going to be late for your exams!"

She received no answer, and raised an eyebrow in slight concern. _He's not usually this late._

Morning sunlight streamed through the window of the small apartment as the young female bustled about, muttering to herself grumpily about the luxuries of sleeping in. She herself had been up for several hours, having risen with the dawn out of habit. She was a tall woman, with delicate features and graceful, nearly dancing movements. Her long white hair fell in waves around her waist, bangs held out of her eyes by the shiny silver Konoha headband proudly glinting from her forehead, and her black eyes were narrowed in concentration as she carefully transferred an omelet from the hot pan to a plate.

Swiftly, Tsukiko set the plate down at Sasuke's usual seat, pouring him a glass of orange juice as well. Satisfied with breakfast, the kunoichi removed her apron from around her waist, replacing it with her ninja pack, a green bag fully equipped with kunai and shuriken, as well as some basic medical supplies.

Tsukiko straightened her uniform, a long-sleeved dark blue-grey shirt and matching pants with a second pack strapped to her leg to hold additional weapons, her boot-like sandals, and a green jounin vest. It suited her rather well, the bulky vest doing little to disguise her curved figure and small waist, or her toned muscles. Finding her appearance suitable, the young woman cocked her head slightly as she listened intently.

The whisper of a sliding door against the wooden floor met her ears, and she smiled happily as she greeted her charge. _Finally!_

"Good morning, Sasuke. Breakfast is waiting at the table."

She was pleased to note that there was not a single quiver in her voice, nor did the young boy before her show any change in expression from his usual grumpy look as he entered the small dining room affixed to the kitchen.

Sasuke Uchiha was a handsome boy of only twelve years of age, with onyx eyes like Tsukiko's that gleaned with intelligence and an awareness uncommon for his youth. Unlike Tsukiko, he had black hair, styled alarmingly like the back end of a duck, and a perpetual frown. He was dressed in his usual attire, a short-sleeved dark blue shirt with a high collar, white shorts, white arm protectors stretching from his wrists to his elbows, similar protectors guarding his shins, and the tall sandals that marked him as a shinobi.

"Thanks," he muttered, straightening the sheath strapped to his leg.

Tsukiko sat across from the young boy, pleased to see a small flash of appreciation at the sight of his favorite meal. She smiled gently, resting her head on her hand. "Are you excited about today? It is the big test, after all!"

He shrugged as he sat down, disinterested in conversation. "There's not much to be excited about. The test is always over clones, and you taught me how to do those years ago. It's a waste of time for me to even be there today."

"Don't say that!" Tsukiko teased, leaning back in her chair. "Today's also your graduation ceremony, after all! And you're the valedictorian, so you can bet I'll be right in the front row, cheering you on!"

Pink faintly dusted his cheeks as he stared determinedly down at his plate. "Yeah, whatever."

Smiling cheekily, the older woman picked up his cleaned plate and walked over to the sink. "Alright, you'd better be on your way if you want to avoid the horde of fangirls that usually runs by in...about two minutes."

With a faint note of panic in his voice, Sasuke wished her a good day before grabbing the bento she prepared for him and leaping out of the window.

As soon as he was out of sight, Tsukiko felt her smile slide away, a melancholy sadness surrounding her.

 _When he acts like that, I can't help but be reminded of-No! Don't think about him, today of all days. It's Sasuke's big day, and I should be one hundred percent focused on him!_

Still, Tsukiko couldn't help the heavy feeling in her heart, filled with a longing she wasn't supposed to hold.

A sharp knock at her door snapped her out of her gloomy state, and she immediately did her best to appear calm and collected.

"Yes?" She asked, opening the door to reveal the hidden face of an Anbu Black Ops ninja.

"Lord Third wishes to speak with you," he said curtly from behind his white bird mask. "He said it's urgent."

"Of course," Tsukiko replied, stepping out of her home. "I'll go at once."

She immediately leapt into the air, the wind whipping her long hair around as she bounced from building to building, heading for the center of the village. The feel of the wind against her skin helped her to calm down, and gave her a sense of weightlessness, as if she were nothing more than a cloud.

All too soon, she found herself outside the door to the Hokage's office. Taking a deep breath, she knocked softly on the door before entering.

The Third Hokage was an old man with his age lined out in his face. He had been forced to take up the role of Hokage after the unfortunate death of the Fourth Hokage during the infamous Nine-Tailed Fox attack on the village twelve years ago. Yet despite his age, he was still incredibly powerful and very wise, giving off the feel of a kind grandfather as he watched her enter, a mischievous twinkle in his eye that immediately put her on guard. That look usually meant he was planning something, and Tsukiko wasn't sure she wanted to be a part of whatever crazy plan he hatched.

Still, she trusted him implicitly, and would follow any order he gave her to the letter. The Third Hokage had saved her life twice in her short eighteen years of age, and it often felt like she'd never be able to repay his generosity.

"Tsukiko," he greeted warmly, smiling at her while his pipe continued to emit purple smoke. Personally, she hated the smell of tobacco, but she let no sign of this show as she returned his smile.

"Lord Third," she returned, bowing her head respectfully. "You asked to see me?"

"Yes," he nodded, a contemplative look on his features. "Tsukiko, how long have you been a jounin?"

Her answer was prompt. "Almost three years, sir. I was promoted after leaving the Anbu."

The old man nodded again, his eyebrows scrunched in thought. His elbows rested on the desk as his hands crossed over one another. "I've been giving this some thought, Tsukiko, and I think I'd like for you to lead a team of genin from today's graduates."

Tsukiko's breath caught as excitement flooded her system. She had been wanting a team of her own ever since she became a jounin. It was the ultimate honor to be entrusted with the next generation of shinobi, and proved that the Third Hokage believed in her abilities, which was more than she could say for a lot of the other ninjas she worked with.

The young woman was not well liked in the village, being a war orphan with dubious ties to the now near-extinct Uchiha Clan. She got along well with Kakashi Hatake, Kurenai Yuhi, and Asuma Sarutobi, but that was about it. And since they were often busy with genin, that meant she was either paired with someone who hated her or was alone on missions. To have a team of her own, filled with new faces that didn't know her, was a dream come true.

Her happiness must have shown on her face, because the Third Hokage's smile widened. "Of course," he added, almost as an afterthought. "We won't know until later today who will be graduating, but it's fairly obvious Sasuke will be at the top of the class…"

Tsukiko was already shaking her head. "Respectfully, Lord Third, I don't think that's a good idea. This is Sasuke's chance to really learn from an upper-class shinobi and spread his wings. I train with him often enough that he knows most of what I can teach him. He needs someone new."

"Very wise," the old man said, refilling his pipe. "Well then, do you have a request for who you'd like him to be paired with?"

The young woman didn't hesitate. "Kakashi Hatake, sir."

With his head down, shadowed by the white Hokage's hat, she didn't catch his satisfied smile. "Why Kakashi? He's never passed a group of genin before."

"Be that as it may, he is the only one who can help Sasuke master his Sharingan. I know that he's awakened it, but I can't really help him with it, despite my knowledge of his capabilities. Kakashi is the only one who can do that."

When he raised his head, his expression was gentle. "Logical as always, Tsukiko."

She blinked, slightly taken aback. Her quick mind and instincts told her she had passed a test of some kind, but she wasn't sure what or why she had been challenged. "Thank you, sir"

Reaching into his desk drawer, the Third Hokage pulled out two files. "As I said before, we won't know who passes until later, but for now, these are the two students I'd like you to train."

"Two?" Tsukiko repeated, confused. A genin team of less than three was usually unacceptable, even with particularly talented students. In a case of numbers not matching up, there would be one or two teams of four plus a teacher, not two.

He waved away her concerns. "There will be a third member. A...transfer from another village. She won't be here for a few days."

Dubious, she picked up the files and flipped through them, her face concealing her surprise.

Both students were girls, which was highly unusual. Kunoichi were far fewer than male ninja, so to have a four-man squad of only women was incredibly rare. It was very curious indeed.

Tsukiko cast a questioning glance at the Hokage, who was watching her intently, waiting for her to say something. Returning her attention to the files, she skimmed through the basics of her team, her eyebrows rising as she read.

 _First up, Chiyo Mitsuru._

The picture showed a bubbly looking girl with a cocky smile and bright turquoise eyes that seemed to hold a fair amount of fighting spirit. Her black hair was roughly shoulder-length and fanned out around her face, two longer braids resting on her shoulders. A quick glance at her scores showed that she was reasonably intelligent, but far more physically inclined. Indeed, her strength was noted as quite formidable, her chakra levels several times higher than that of the average ninja.

Not to be outdone, the second girl, Midori Hisoka, was just as impressive. The picture showed a blushing girl with a shy smile, as if she was not used to being photographed. She had the greenest eyes Tsukiko had ever seen, and long blond hair that was pulled up in a high ponytail, a few strands framing her face. While average in physical abilities, she had impressive chakra control, and her family was known to be quite gifted in medical ninjutsu. She was also very intelligent, and worked well with others.

 _A fighter and a healer…_ Tsukiko mused, meeting the Hokage's expectant eyes. And both with above-average abilities, ensuring that she had her work cut out for her. Chiyo seemed to be quite cocky, and Midori was likely more reserved. Still, their personalities would balance each other out nicely.

"Very well," she said, accepting the assignment. "I think these two and I will get along fine. My only concern is the third genin on my team."

"Well, about that…" Once again, he lowered his head to hide his expression. "She's a special case. In fact, she's not actually a genin. She's a jounin from Kirigakure, who has been declared dead by the village."

Even the most reserved of shinobi wouldn't have been able to hide their shock at such an incredible statement.

"A jounin from the Mist?!" Tsukiko spluttered, at a loss for words. _What is he_ thinking _?! She's probably a spy, for Kami's sake!_

"I understand your fears," the old man said, putting up a hand to stop her protests. "I was the same, at first. But in the condition we found her, she should be dead. Her body had several killing blows, and was only still functioning due to her will and considerable chakra.

"We found her three weeks ago near our border, and took her in for questioning. She claimed she was thrown out due to close ties with one of the infamous Seven Ninja Swordsmen who defected, and the village no longer trusted her, ordering her killed. She managed to make it to our border before she was attacked, and ended up killing several Mist shinobi before she succumbed. We found several bodies, corroborating her story, and she has spent the last three weeks recovering, as well as undergoing a rather harsh psychological assault to see if she's telling the truth."

"So we are accepting her into the village?" Tsukiko asked skeptically. "Near genin, no less?"

The Third Hokage pulled out another file, handing it to her. "As you can see, her skills are quite formidable, and I don't have the inclination or resources to keep a squad on her at all times. I need someone skilled enough to handle her by themselves. That being said, I don't want to deprive you of being a sensei, and I don't want to alienate our new arrival by placing her under a strict guard. This way, she will feel trusted, and also be watched."

Tsukiko frowned at the file. It made sense, logically enough, but she still didn't like it. The Mist and Leaf Villages had been on opposite sides of the the Third Great Ninja War, making any move by the Mist seem suspicious.

 _Masuko Arashi_ , she read, staring intently at the photo, committing it to memory. It showed a woman with short, spiky hair that appeared black at first glance but was actually a deep purple. She had bright blue eyes that almost seemed to glow, and was quite pretty, her smile showing genuine relief and happiness. Her Leaf headband was on her upper left arm, displayed where the camera could plainly see it.

 _She seems nice enough at first glance, but then you look at her abilities, which are more than enough to raise a few eyebrows._

Her personality seen thus far was cocky and somewhat arrogant, but that was really no surprise, coming from the Mist. They always _had_ admired physical strength over mental, which is why Konoha had come out victorious in the War. And Masuko certainly seemed to be the type of person they'd cultivate. She had an absolutely _insane_ amount of chakra, and could use both Water and Earth Styles interchangeably. The former Mist jounin was intelligent and able to avoid enemy attention for long distances, as she had shown by managing to make it from the Mist to the Leaf.

Immediately, Tsukiko saw the Hokage's train of thought. She would make an excellent teacher for Chiyo, who also had incredible amounts of chakra. Whereas Tsukiko, who had slightly above average chakra, and perfect chakra control, would be a fitting teacher for Midori.

"So you plan on us both being senseis for the two genin?" She asked, raising her eyebrow.

He had the decency to look embarrassed. "In essence, yes. But, Masuko would be under your command, so it's your decision to have her train with Chiyo or not."

"I understand," Tsukiko said, stone faced. She knew that after only three years, it was incredible that she was training anyone, so the fact that she'd also be babysitting a possible threat to the village really shouldn't bother her as much as it did. And yet, she was frustrated. She was more than qualified to lead a _complete_ team of _genin_ on her own!

"Tsukiko," The old man sighed, sensing her reluctance. "You're the only one I can count on to do this. I know how skilled you are, which is why I have complete confidence that this will work."

Warmth for the fatherly Hokage shot through her, and she knew she couldn't refuse him.

"Very well, I accept."

The Third Hokage smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Tsukiko. You may go."

She turned away. "I'll see you at the graduation ceremony, sir."

Behind him, she heard him chuckle, no doubt refilling his pipe with the foul smelling tobacco. "Yes, I'm sure Sasuke's speech will be excellent. If I'm not mistaken, you were also valedictorian, weren't you?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Hiruzen wished he could pull them out of the air. He really was getting old, if he was forgetting such important details!

Tsukiko's back had gone ramrod straight, her shoulders shaking slightly. "Yes sir, I was the co-valedictorian in my year."

Hiruzen winced at the distance in her voice, sighing guiltily. Of course, she had been close to the Uchiha boy, the incredibly gifted shinobi to whom they owed their current peace.

"Ah, I apologize," he said awkwardly. "I didn't mean to bring up painful memories."

"I understand," she said shortly, nearly reaching the door before stopping once more. "Oh, and sir?"

"Yes Tsukiko?"

"I noticed your guard outside is different from your usual Anbu shinobi," she said, her voice cold. "When you relay back the results of whatever test you gave me today, please give my regards to Danzo."

And with that, she left.

Hiruzen blinked, lowering his head sheepishly. "She caught us," he murmured, amused and surprised. "I knew that she was an exceptional woman, but her powers of intuition are really quite uncanny."

Raising his voice, he calmly addressed the hidden Anbu in the room, the ones Tsukiko had noticed the instant she'd entered. "Well, you heard her. Tell Danzo she agreed to guard Masuko, and that she has no designs to warp Sasuke Uchiha's future to suit her own needs."

As the hidden ninja left, the old man stood up, walking over to the window to watch the peaceful village, pondering recent and old events. Indeed, he felt Tsukiko was the one most suited to help Masuko. That woman was also in a lot of pain, more emotional than physical. And they both had been betrayed by their villages.

His eyes darkened. He had never liked Danzo's plan, a plan that nearly wiped out an entire section of their history, and cast a hero into darkness. Tsukiko was not aware of the truth, and it was far better that way. If she was, who knows what steps she would take to get her revenge.

Hiruzen suddenly felt very old and wearied. For a long time, far too long, he had watched the futures of his ninja, his children, play out. Some were happy, and some were tragic. There were those who were on an easy path, then there were those like young Naruto, young Sasuke, and poor Tsukiko.

Over the years, he had truly come to care for the girl and her wellbeing, which was why he had pushed so hard for her to be a sensei. The Council and Danzo had been against it, Danzo especially. He argued that she would surely want Sasuke on her team, so she could continue to mold him as a weapon.

 _He's far too paranoid._ And it was true. Danzo didn't believe that Tsukiko had miraculously forgotten everything, and was biding her time to get revenge. And yet, she had acted out of nothing but concern for her young ward, having already decided on a suitable teacher who was not only exactly who Hiruzen had in mind for Naruto as well as Sasuke, but who was also incredibly loyal to the village. Sasuke was in safe hands with her, he was sure.

The Third Hokage stayed there for a long time, lost in thought about how the talented little girl with white hair and onyx eyes had come to the village.


	3. Chapter 2

A.N. Holy crap, you guys! What happened? I put up the prologue and first chapter with little to no explanation to see what would happen, and you guys exploded on me! Thank you so much!

Anyway, I'd like to say a few things before we really get into it. The only big storyline I'm divulging from is the ages. It was something I struggled with for a bit, but I really needed Itachi to be older so I could establish a good pre-massacre romance. So, he was 15 when he killed everyone, and Sasuke was 9. It's been three years since that time, and Sasuke is under Tsukiko's care.

Now, was can all agree that Naruto has...quite a few flashbacks, to put it mildly. In the spirit of that, every chapter will be peppered with memories, some of them a little abruptly. I don't want to say, "yes, they loved each other," without showing it. If you don't like that style, that is completely fine.

Finally, Itachi will only be showing up in flashbacks for quite a while. I want to focus on Tsukiko's dynamic with Sasuke first. I need their relationship to be believable. So, I'm going to feature the Chunin exams (not line for line, don't worry), Sasuke's curse mark, and the death of the Third Hokage all before Itachi reappears. This is a loooooong story.

Now, I use mostly the canonical anime episodes for the dialogue, and the Itachi books for the flashbacks, as I think they explain his story better than the anime. Again, if you don't like that, that's fine. I'm just explaining what we're in for.

FINAL WARNING! Tsukiko's Gensogan basically makes her the Avatar. Sorry. However, she is NOT OP! This will be better explained later, but she doesn't have a crazy amount of chakra, and her eyes have several limitation. She can, however, bend the elements, and her movements are basically the same as in Avatar.

Okay, warnings are done! As a thank you to all my readers, here is the first flashback, consisting of Tsukiko's back story. I call these segments "THEN" in my head, and the future as "NOW."

THEN:

Tsukiko Amaya learned very early on what it was to experience pain, loss, and terror so strong that it paralyzed your very limbs.

She lived quietly with her parents in a small farming village on the outskirts of the Land of Fire. It was a peaceful and beautiful place untouched by the Third Great Ninja War, a vicious conflict that seemed to affect everyone but her village, small and out of the way as it was. The only problems they had were the crops that hadn't done well this summer, leaving many to wonder how they would make it through winter. Supplies were hard to come by this far away from civilization, filling the town with a sense of approaching dread that even Tsukiko, despite only being four years of age, could feel.

Yet even with all that, she was content and happy with her parents.

Tensei Amaya and Hisano Amaya had come to the village four years ago, wanting to keep their newborn daughter away from the fighting and danger of the shinobi world. Tensei was a handsome man in his early thirties, with short brown hair and onyx eyes. His wife, Hisano, was in her late twenties and quite beautiful. Her long white hair was very distinct against the forest, and her brown eyes were full of kindness and strength. Their arrival was met with a rather hostile greeting, however, where they were told in no uncertain terms that Ninja were not welcome in the village, and that should they choose to live there, the Amaya family would live in the forest outside the town.

Desperate to keep the knowledge of his daughter's abilities secret, Tensei agreed, and the family lived hidden away for over three years.

But things were not meant to last. Tsukiko quickly developed an affinity for the elements, suggesting that she would indeed awaken her powers someday. Somehow, the village leaders found out that they were harboring a child with a rare kekkei genkai that would surely bring dangerous ninja into their quiet life, either to steal her powers or eliminate them.

But they faced a dilemma. Tensei Amaya, while not having the Gensogan, seemed to be able to grow plants faster and more bountiful than any they had ever seen. Their village had been relatively poor, and close to starving every winter, before him. If they banished his family, the whole village would suffer the loss. In the end, they decided to bite their tongues until the girl actually awoke her powers. Until then, they would wait for an opportunity to get rid of the family without too much detriment to the village.

Soon, the leaders saw exactly the opportunity they were looking for. The Village Hidden in the Mist was badly in need of new shinobi, and were offering large rewards for gifted children. With the money, they could easily shore up enough supplies to last the village through several poor winters. The Amaya clan was no longer necessary, especially the hated Tsukiko.

And there was no doubt that she was hated. Villagers met her family with hostility the few times they wandered into town, and the other children bullied her mercilessly. As she grew, she could see the toll their isolation took on her parents, though they never wavered in their affection for her. They were a happy and loving family, a bubble of peace in a hostile environment.

That is, until the village betrayed them.

It was a hot sunny day near the end of summer, and Tsukiko was training with her father. She was very young, but her father already began to teach her the skills needed to be a successful shinobi. Her parents had decided that it was better for Tsukiko to learn to control her powers even before they had awoken, and were taking her through the forms to control the elements. It wasn't Taijutsu, exactly, but four different types of movement. Tsukiko wasn't a particularly aggressive child, and didn't want to hurt anyone, so her father called the movements "dancing."

From her mother, Tsukiko learned the dances for Wind and Water, while her father taught her Fire and Earth. And indeed, they truly were dances, expressions of the elements. Wind used sweeping, slicing motions, like spins or kicks, all accomplished while being on one's toes, lighter than a feather. Water was more graceful, using flowing, yoga-like moves that blended seamlessly with one another. Earth was the most difficult for her, being small. It's aggressive movements expressed weight, a sense that you were stronger than the ground. Fire, her favorite, was also aggressive, but more like water in that the disciplined movements flowed and flickered. It was a dance that made her feel strong without being overly hostile, and even her parents agreed it was her best form.

That day, she was working on Earth, trying to force her body to find the rhythm to the harsh movements and stomps. She was doing well, matching her father's movements carefully, hoping in the back of her mind that she'd be able to play soon.

And then, she heard her mother's agonized scream.

It was a sound that never left Tsukiko, a sound that would haunt her nightmares for years and remind her of what she learned that fateful day: there was great evil in the world.

Her father turned toward the house, a cry of pain leaving his lips at the sight before him.

Tsukiko spun around, trying to find her mother, and froze in terror.

There was a man standing there, a stranger to the village. His headband marked him as from Amegakure, the Village Hidden by Rain, though Tsukiko didn't know that yet. The man had long blond hair, and wore a gas mask of some kind, covering half of his face, but not enough to mask the greed in his eyes as he watched the father and child.

And in his arms, the man's scythe still stuck through her chest, was Tsukiko's mother.

"M-Mother?" The young girl whispered, shaking. Tears began to fall from her eyes, and she looked up at her father. "Father, what did that man do?! Will Mother be okay?"

Knocked out of his own anguish by his daughter's voice, Tensei Amaya moved quickly to block his daughter from view. "What do you want?" He called angrily, fury rushing through him at the sight of his wife's body.

The ninja chuckled. "So those Mist fools were right after all...For decades it was lost, and now the Gensogan returns to us? Did you think we wouldn't come for the child? How naive." His voice had a strange, gravelled quality to it, probably from his mask. "With her abilities, perhaps we can turn the tide of this hateful war."

Tensei growled low in his throat, and turned his head, keeping one eye on the ninja. "Tsukiko, I need you to do something for me. Can you do it?"

Something in her father's voice made Tsukiko nod her head wordlessly. She knew that the man holding her mother was incredibly dangerous, and she had been trained well for such a small child.

"Run."

That word, spoken just above a whisper, freed Tsukiko from her remaining paralysis. Adrenaline filled her body, and despite the tears blocking her vision, her legs propelled her into the nearby forest, heading toward the village.

 _Please be okay, Father._

The run to the village was short, but seemed to take centuries. Bushes snagged in her clothes and tried to pull her back, but fear of something chasing her made sure the girl never wavered.

Finally, Tsukiko saw the shapes of the houses that dotted the village, and a sob of relief escaped her. Surely someone there could help her mother?

"Please! Somebody!" She called, racing to the first wooden house and banging on the door. "Help us!" She pulled on the locked door desperately, trying to get someone's attention.

No one answered, and Tsukiko turned desperately to the next house, getting the same response. Slowly, she began to realize how quiet it was, how she could hear her own heartbeat. There was no movement in the village, nothing alive but herself. The villagers had all vanished.

Fear again struck her, at the thought that the scary ninja had hurt everyone she knew. She fell to her knees, sobbing quietly. Tsukiko knew she needed to hide, but the thought that she was all alone was too much for her to take.

Her tears watered the hard ground for several minutes before she forced herself to move. As she rose to her feet, she looked around for a suitable hiding spot. Now looking closely, she could see something odd. There were footprints leading out of the village, dozens of them leading from every house and down the streets.

Tsukiko followed the prints curiously, stopping once she reached the edge of the forest. Glancing back at the empty village, the little girl made up her mind and raced ahead. She was relieved that the people were alright, but confused as to why they'd all left. Did they see the scary man and run?

Instinct triggered in her body as she felt rather than saw the projectile aimed at her right leg. She threw herself to the left, rolling and landing in a crouch among the dead fall leaves.

"Not bad, child," a gravelly voice complimented.

Tsukiko looked up and saw the scary man watching her from a tree branch. His shirt was completely soaked in blood, but his scythe was clean, it's gleaming point thirsty for more. He was holding two shuriken in his hand, the source of the projectile.

"Where's Father?" She heard herself ask, still crouched defensively.

"Dead," the man said casually, as if the taking of a human life meant little. "And you'll be dead as well if you don't come with me right now. Alive would be preferable, but I can just bring your eyes back with me."

Shock froze her veins, and Tsukiko stared disbelievingly, her brain frozen on that one word, so callously spoken. Anger and desperation crashed through her system, and her small body shook as her fists clenched.

 _Father, dead. Dead. Deaddeaddeaddead-_

A warmth flowed to her eyes, a wave of power that wiggled and spun her retinas. Her breathing became ragged, and she curled up even tighter, that awful word pounding in her brain even as her eyes swirled. There were different powers, different feelings, and Tsukiko felt her heart thunder in her chest as she made her choice.

"Stop that weakness," the ninja commanded. He saw the child's body tense, and when she looked up to glare at him, he saw that her onyx eyes had turned red.

"Stay away from me," Tsukiko hissed, her emotions running wild. She leapt to her feet and thrust her hand towards the man, rewarded with a stream of fire that blasted at him.

The fire seemed to emanate from her palm, it's bright orange color setting nearby trees ablaze as she tried to follow the man's movements.

The ninja dodged easily, his hands moving rapidly. A moment later, water enveloped her fire, extinguishing the bright orange with blue.

Tsukiko fell to her knees, the power gone. She gasped for breath, trying to find enough strength to do that again, whatever it was. She felt as if she had run several miles, and was completely exhausted. The smell of burnt wood and wet leaves filled her nose, and consciousness seemed to fade in and out.

She heard another noise, the gravelly voice of the man. He was laughing and saying something, but she couldn't hear it. A buzzing filled her ears, and she felt rough arms pick her up. Struggling against the blackness behind her eyes and the painful grip of the man, Tsukiko did the only thing she could.

Her teeth sunk into the arm holding her, as she desperately bit down.

With a cry of rage and pain, the man dropped her, grasping at his wounded arm.

Tsukiko hit the ground hard, the taste of blood in her mouth. It was salty and made her throat tingle unpleasantly, distracting from the pain of her fall. She hadn't broken anything, but it hurt nonetheless. Bile rose up in her throat, and she felt her body reject the blood in her mouth. She turned and threw up, gagging as the coppery taste left her. Her body felt worse than before, weak and like she was choking on air.

A movement above her was all it took to remind the girl that she wasn't out of danger. Gasping, she raised her head to look at the man, and found herself staring into the yellow eyes of an enormous purple snake.

It was a massive creature, its head twice the size of her body and its scaly torso longer than her house. Powerful coils splayed behind it, the purple scales rippling with strength that ended with a deadly tail moving like a whip.

A whimper left her throat as its tongue flicked out, licking her cheek. It opened its mouth, finding the taste of her agreeable enough, and showed her foot-long fangs, dripping with venom.

Certain that she was about to die, Tsukiko tried to move, but found herself transfixed by the snake's eyes as it suddenly reared its head back. A scream left her throat as it struck.

The ninja behind her roared in pain as the snake's lethal fangs easily pierced his shoulder. He staggered, dropping the scythe he'd been about to plunge into Tsukiko's unprotected back.

The snake pulled back as if to strike again, but instead wrapped its body twice around Tsukiko before she could blink. Struck dumb with terror, she felt its coils tighten painfully around her body as it launched itself backwards and into the air. The little girl closed her eyes as the snake squeezed the breath out of her. It pulled her up into a tree and released her just as suddenly, depositing her onto something soft.

"Well now. You're an interesting one, aren't you?"

The voice was soft and hissing, sending shivers of fear down Tsukiko's spine.

Her eyes snapped open as she realized she was being held by someone. Her frightened gaze met the golden gaze of yet another snake.

 _No. Not a snake. A...person?_

The man certainly looked like a serpent, with extremely pale skin and slanted yellow eyes. He had long black hair and a headband identifying him as yet another ninja.

Overwhelmed by scary men, all Tsukiko could do was stare as the ninja chuckled.

"Jiraiya," he called behind him. "I have the girl. She'll need an antidote though. The silly child bit Hanzo."

Indignation at being called silly swept away some of Tsukiko's fatigue, and her onyx orbs narrowed in a glare.

Before she could say anything, the man leapt to the side and she was forced to hang onto him tightly. Kunai knives embedded themselves into the wood of the tree, exactly where they had just been.

"Leaf ninja," growled the masked man. "Why are you here?"

"We could say the same to you, Hanzo," another voice responded cockily. "You're a long way from the Land of Rain." The voice belonged to a white-haired ninja with a confident grin. He had odd lines trailing from his eyes, and a mole on his nose.

"Jiraiya," the man holding Tsukiko hissed. "Take the girl to Tsunade and run. I'll hold off Hanzo."

Jiraiya sighed. "I suppose this isn't the time for an all-out fight. Fine, Orochimaru."

Orochimaru set Tsukiko down without a backward glance, easily breaking her death grip, and leapt at Hanzo. Immediately, she scooted away from Jiraiya's kind face. She was still feeling dizzy, and her stomach hurt, making her want to throw up again.

 _Another enemy._

Jiraiya stopped at the sight of Tsukiko's tearstained face and noticed her shaking form and wide, frightened eyes. "It's okay, I'm not going to hurt you," he said, holding up his hands in surrender.

Dizzy, all Tsukiko could think to whisper was, "No more snakes."

The white-haired man sighed angrily and looked over his shoulder. "Great job, Orochimaru! You traumatized the poor girl!" He shook his head, and tried again, smiling warmly.

"I'm sorry. Orochimaru is just a big meanie. I, on the other hand, and the legendary Jiraiya!" He struck a pose. "You're safe with me! I promise, no more snakes!"

Tsukiko might've found the strange man funny, if it weren't for the dizziness rising in her head. "I don't feel good," she said simply.

Jiraiya immediately dropped all humor and knelt beside her. "Look, kid. I need you to trust me. You're sick, and I can take you to someone with medicine."

"Ok," Tsukiko said, allowing the man to pick her up. Dimly, she thought that the person with medicine might be able to help her parents. She closed her eyes as they moved quickly through the trees, the man holding her head to protect her from whipping branches. How far they traveled, or how long, Tsukiko had no idea. It could have been a few seconds or a few hours.

"Tsunade!" Jiraiya shouted, landing lightly. "She's been poisoned!"

Tsukiko opened her eyes tiredly to see a very pretty woman with long blond hair and brown eyes leaning over her. They were back in the empty village, the houses staring at her disapprovingly.

"How did this happen?!" She said angrily, pushing Jiraiya out of the way.

"Well, Hanzo had her, and she sort of...bit him," Jiraiya explained, laughing as he rubbed his head.

"She bit him?!" Tsunade cried in outrage, lunging for her medical bag. "I only hope I still-yes!" She held up a container holding a needle. "This is the last antidote for Hanzo's venom I have with me. I didn't expect to run into him here of all places!" Without preamble, she uncapped the needle and stabbed it into Tsukiko's arm.

"Aah!" Tsukiko screamed, thrashing at the stinging sensation. The antidote quickly flowed into her bloodstream, and she felt the dizziness start to fade as her head cleared. She glared at Jiraiya. "You promised no more snakes!"

Jiraiya threw his head back and laughed. "So I did. But that wasn't a snake, it was a shot. It made you feel better, right?"

Tsukiko thought about it. "Yes, it did," She allowed grudgingly.

Tsunade sighed. "Let's hope Orochimaru has the sense to end the battle quickly and withdraw before he's poisoned as well. We need to get back to the Leaf Village."

Tsukiko slowly stood, looking around. They were in the middle of the village center, amongst empty buildings and abandoned possessions. But none of that mattered to her. She needed to get home.

Unsteadily, she began to walk down the path to her house. She had only taken a few steps, however, when Jiraiya's voice stopped her.

"And where do you think you're going?"

 _That's right. I forgot my manners._

Clumsily, Tsukiko turned and bowed. "Thank you for your help," She said, remembering what her parents taught her to do. "I need to get home to my mother and father. Mother was hurt, and she needs my help." She lit up briefly as she looked at Tsunade. "You have medicine. You can come help too!"

Pain flashed briefly on the faces of the two older ninja. "Kid, I'm sorry," Jiraiya said, even as Tsunade glared at the ground. "But your parents are...well, they're gone."

Tsukiko shook her head firmly. "That was a lie the bad man told," she explained. Her mother and father were fine, and she would go back home and take a nap curled up with her mother. It had been an exhausting day.

"I'm sorry," the woman said gently. "But we were too late to save them. They truly are gone."

A fierce anger suddenly surged through Tsukiko, and she felt the warmth behind her eyes again. She welcomed the feeling of strength it gave her, and she glared harshly at the blond woman. "No. They're. NOT!" She shouted, stomping her foot.

The rock split, and a crack as long as Tsukiko appeared in the earth, making the two shinobi step back in alarm.

"She's already activated the Gensogan?!" Tsunade exclaimed, startled. "Why wasn't the Leaf Village notified?!"

"It must've been because of Hanzo," Jiraiya said sadly. He knelt in front of the furious child, her eyes switching color rapidly. First green, then red, then yellow, and finally blue before the pattern repeated. It was quite terrifying to see, especially on one so young.

"What's your name?" He asked gently.

"Tsukiko," she answered, her voice exhausted. "And Mother and Father are okay, right?"

Jiraiya's voice was gentle and consoling. "I'm so sorry Tsukiko, but the bad man took them away, and they can't come back."

The truth in his eyes shattered something inside Tsukiko, something irreparable. Her eyes flashed red, and she threw her head back with a scream. "NO!"

Fire burst from her mouth and shot up into the sky, making Jiraiya leap back to avoid the flames.

It was strange, the feeling of fire leaving her mouth. It didn't burn, or even feel like something was in her mouth. Rather, it was more likely that the air of her scream became fire as soon as it passed her lips.

Once she was out of air, the fire went out, and she sank to her knees, exhausted and angry. Tears left her eyes as she tried to come to terms with the fact that, at the age of four, she was now an orphan.

"She's used too much chakra," Tsunade warned as Jiraiya gently picked her up.

"Tsukiko," He began, holding her close. "I'm so sorry this happened to you, but you need to be strong for your mom and dad. They used to live in the Leaf Village, where we're going to take you. There you can learn to fight, learn to be strong enough to protect the ones you love, so they never have to leave like your parents did."

Tsukiko listened to his words mutely, her face blank. Her parents were gone, because someone bad had hurt them. She didn't want that to happen to anyone else, especially the people she loved.

On that day, Tsukiko made a vow to herself. She would become stronger than anyone else, become someone who protects.

A.N. And there we go! This was a short chapter, but it gives you guys an idea of Tsukiko's motivations, and why she and Itachi got along.

I apologize if I demonized Danzo a bit, but this is through the eyes of a child, so...Plus, I wanted her to have a bit of a background with the Sannin, Orochimaru in particular.

Please review!


	4. Chapter 3

A.N. Twenty hearts on Quotev already?! My goodness that's amazing! And so, without further ado, here's the next chapter!

* * *

NOW:

Tsukiko bustled around the kitchen, listening goodnaturedly to Sasuke's endless complaining as she made dinner. He had evidently been assigned to the same team as Naruto Uzumaki, a boy who had only barely passed.

'Naruto, hm?' Tsukiko didn't know much about him, other than his being the Nine-Tailed Jinchuuriki and that everyone despised him for it. Knowing what it was like to be hated within your own home, she had always felt sorry for the young boy.

Unbeknownst to Sasuke, she often went out of her way to leave food on Naruto's door step, especially ramen. Iruka had mentioned it was his favorite, and Tsukiko felt that it was the least she could do. Without her, Sasuke would be a ward of the Hokage, and have no one to care for him, just like Naruto. The thought made her incredibly sad, so she did her part to show him that someone cared.

"That loser's just going to slow me down," Sasuke muttered darkly, glaring at the table. "I get that they want to pair the best with the worst to balance out the team, but it's only holding me back."

"You never know," Tsukiko said encouragingly, scooping rice into bowls. "Maybe you two will motivate each other. From what I remember, Naruto is a pretty determined kid. And you know, it's incredibly useful to have a teammate that keeps you wanting to better yourself."

Privately, Tsukiko thought it would be good for Sasuke to have a rival. She often worried that he would eventually rely more on his Sharingan and other natural skills over those he had developed through training. Of course, it was possible she was being too hard on him. Sasuke wasn't like her, who trained every extra second of everyday. He wasn't like It—

Slamming the bowls of curried rice on the table a little harder than necessary, Tsukiko took her thoughts away from their dark path. Thoughts of old teammates were dangerous, especially with how easily Sasuke could read her expressions.

Sure enough, the younger boy's eyes flickered with agony for a brief moment. She knew that he knew she never purposely thought of the older Uchiha, but it was hard. They were living memories of those painful times, straining their relationship even at the best of times. He looked at her and saw his big brother's closest teammate and companion, and she looked at him and saw...

Silence reigned over their meal for a few minutes, until—

"Do you still think about him?"

Sasuke's quiet question sent a lightning bolt down her spine. "Who?" She asked, fighting to keep a smile plastered on her face. Her voice was a subtle warning. 'Not now, Sasuke. Please.'

"Itachi."

All of her strength seemed to drain away, and she slumped slightly, lowering her head to avoid the young boy seeing the anguish in her eyes. "I do."

Everyday, there were dozens of reminders of Sasuke's older brother, not including Sasuke himself. It was impossible for her to not think about the man she had loved with all of her being. Itachi Uchiha has been her world.

Until he'd destroyed it.

"So do I," Sasuke said angrily, his grip on his chopsticks tightening. "And that is why I can't be held back by anyone. I need to get stronger, strong enough to avenge my clan."

The young woman had heard this before, but rarely with so much hatred and desperation. 'He must've had another nightmare.'

Without thinking, she walked over and hugged the boy she had sworn to protect. Tsukiko loved Sasuke dearly, from the moment he was born, and it hurt her to see him like this. Silently, she cursed Itachi for breaking their promise, for turning this sweet little boy into a cold and angry genin. She cursed him for making Sasuke miserable, and she cursed him for making her wish he was still there with them.

Sasuke stiffened in her hold, not entirely comfortable with being hugged. "It's okay, Tsukiko," He said awkwardly, much of his tension fading as surprise took hold.

"Sorry," the older girl said, releasing him. "I'm just...I'm so proud of how strong you've become."

Her words seemed to cheer him up considerably, and after a brief awkwardness, they spent the rest of the meal chatting amiably about the next day. Tsukiko was excited to meet her team, and Sasuke was impatient to meet his sensei. Tsukiko let it slip that she knew who it was and spent the rest of the evening dodging questions about it.

Eventually, she convinced him to get some sleep while she cleaned up the kitchen, teasing him that it would make a poor first impression to have bags under his eyes, and didn't he want to be "cooler than that loser?"

Now, a few hours later, Tsukiko was sitting on the front porch of her little house, a hot cup of tea steaming beside her as she allowed the cool night wind to soothe her nerves. She had done this since she was a little girl, unable to sleep when her own nightmares threatened to overwhelm her. The only two things that keep the monsters at bay were the night wind, and It—

'No, it's okay. No one is watching, no one is looking to see if you're thinking traitorous thoughts about him. I can think his name here. I'm safe.'

"Itachi," she sighed his name heavily, looking up at the stars above. "Why did you leave me?"

Memories all attacked her mind at once, the carefully repressed feelings surging forth. Tsukiko knew better than to fight them, so she just let them come, tears streaming down her cheeks as she got lost.

* * *

THEN:

"Tsukiko, this village is your home now," the old man before her explained. He was wearing white robes and a funny hat. Jiraiya told her he was the Hokage, the leader of Konohagakure, the Village Hidden in the Leaves.

The trip from her village to the Leaf took nearly three days, most of which she spent with Jiraiya. Tsunade was nice, but got angry easily and was a little scary. Orochimaru terrified her, but she tried not to show it and was always polite. He didn't shout, at least. He was either dismissive of her or amused by her caution around him. Jiraiya was nice, and made her giggle with his poses.

The loss of her parents didn't really seem real until they arrived back at the village. A part of her thought this was a dream, and her mother and father would wake her up any moment. It wasn't until she had been standing before the Hokage, a kind old man, that reality set in.

He had asked her to demonstrate her eye power, and Tsukiko was quick to comply. She could sort of activate it, but wasn't very strong. She could move a pebble, or make a candle flame appear, but that was about it.

Nevertheless, the Hokage was very impressed, and told her that her parents used to live in the Leaf. He explained that they had kept in contact with Leaf officials over the years, and that Tsukiko was more than welcome in their village.

The young girl didn't know how to feel. On one hand, she was still hoping that her parents would wake her up, but the grownup part of her, born during her recent fight, told her that they were gone.

Sensing her discomfort, the old man knelt in front of her. "Tsukiko," He said quietly, making her look up at him. "What happened to you and your family was a terrible thing, a tragedy born of this monstrous war. I apologize that you were caught up in it, and I want to help you. Will you trust me?"

Tsukiko nodded slowly, wiping tears eyes on the back of her hand.

The old man smiled, turning to look behind her. "Ah, Fugaku, Mikoto, thank you for coming."

Looking over her shoulder, Tsukiko saw a strict-looking man with short black hair and onyx eyes, and a pretty woman with the same hair and eyes, though her hair was considerably longer. The woman had a bright smile on her face, and was noticeably pregnant, the slight bump on her stomach showing that she wasn't too far along.

"Is that her?" That man asked, his stern looks lightening with pity as he looked at the young girl.

"Yes," The Hokage answered, standing up to shake the man's hand. "Thank you for offering to take her in."

"It's no trouble!" The woman said, shaking her head. "There's always room for one more."

"Tsukiko," The Third Hokage said, turning back to her. "This is Fugaku Uchiha and his wife, Mikoto Uchiha. I'd like you to go live with them, alright? The Uchiha Clan's Sharingan is the closest the village has to your Gensogan, so perhaps you'll find a teacher somewhere amongst them."

Biting her lip, Tsukiko looked back and forth between the Hokage and the couple, unsure of what to say.

The woman, Mikoto, walked over to her and carefully knelt, mindful of her stomach. "Hi, Tsukiko," she smiled sadly. "I'm Mikoto, and well…" she paused. "This is a little embarrassing, but I need your help."

Now Tsukiko was confused. A grownup needed her help?

"I'm the only girl in my house," she said sighing dramatically. "And once this little one is born, I have a feeling I'll be hopelessly outnumbered. So, could you pretty please come stay with us? I need another girl to help balance out all the boys!"

Tsukiko giggled slightly, nodding her head. "Okay." She wasn't sure about Fugaku, but she liked Mikoto, who seemed kind and silly. And it wasn't like she had that many options.

Mikoto clapped happily. "Perfect!" She stood up and held out her hand. "I can't wait for you to meet Itachi!"

Tsukiko took her hand, finding comfort in the older woman's motherly presence.

Mikoto filled the walk to Tsukiko's new home with descriptions of what their house looked like and excitedly told her all about a son her age, assuring Tsukiko that they'd get along well. Fugaku Uchiha walked in silence, but seemed to be very proud of himself. A future shinobi of enormous power was placed in his household, where he could oversee the shaping of her loyalties.

When they reached the house, a pretty brown and white wood structure, there was a boy sitting on the front porch, watching them approach.

Tsukiko immediately felt unease. Any time she had been around children her age, they had been violent and abusive. She had no reason to believe this boy would be any different.

Mikoto smiled happily. "Itachi! I'd like you to meet our newest family member, Tsukiko!"

The young girl hid shyly behind the older woman, watching the boy approach.

He was a little taller than her, and had the same black hair and eyes as his family. There were two lines running down the sides of his nose, which, coupled with his unsmiling face, made him look quite intimidating.

"Hello," He said politely.

"H-Hello," Tsukiko returned uneasily.

Mikoto moved so that she was no longer shielding her from view. "Itachi, I want you to show Tsukiko around, okay? Dinner will be ready in around two hours, so you have till then."

Fugaku nodded in agreement, disappearing into the house to work.

Tsukiko looked down at her shoes, not meeting Itachi's eyes as Mikoto left as well, leaving them all alone.  
"Are you okay?"

She flinched, looking up to find him right in front of her.  
Itachi cocked his head, his expression puzzled. "Are you afraid of me?"

"N-No!" Tsukiko said defensively. "I just—I'm not used to being around other kids!"

His expression was unreadable as he watched her. "Were they mean to you?"

Caught off-guard by his blunt question, Tsukiko answered without thinking. "Yes. They hurt me, because of my Gensogan."

Itachi nodded wordlessly, his expression never-changing. "Do you know how to hold a kunai?"

She blinked, shaking her head. "No."

He sighed as if he was doing some great favor to her. "Fine. Let's go."

"Wh-Where?" Tsukiko has never considered herself dumb, but she felt completely clueless around this boy.

He turned his back to her. "Mother will expect us to spend a lot of time together," he said a hint of annoyance in his tone. "So I might as well teach you how to be a good training partner for me. And that way, you can protect yourself from bullies."

Tsukiko opened her mouth to refuse, offended by how rude he was, but her body froze at the word "protect." Wasn't that the promise she made to herself? That she'd become strong enough to protect others and herself?

"Fine," she heard herself say. "Teach me everything you know."

And so it was that Tsukiko Amaya was unofficially adopted into the Uchiha Clan.

* * *

"Wait up, Itachi!" Tsukiko demanded, following the dark-haired boy into the forest. The sun had barely risen above the trees, and daylight animals were just beginning to stir, while their nighttime counterparts settled down to sleep.

Tsukiko was used to being awake at this time, having lived in a farming village that awoke and slept with the sun, but the woods surrounding Konoha were still unfamiliar, and her guide seemed to have little patience for her trying to remember the path.

Several weeks had passed, and Tsukiko had acclimated well to her new home. She was polite and helpful around the house, which endeared her to Mikoto, and was often training with Itachi, which earned Fugaku's approval.

The Third Great Ninja War ended almost three months after Tsukiko's arrival in the Leaf Village, with an armistice between its principal aggressors, Konohagakure and Iwagakure. Although the war had been proceeding favorably for Konoha, Hiruzen, the Third Hokage, established a policy of reconciliation to bring an end to the fighting with an unprecedented offer to not seek reparations from Iwagakure. Advocates for the war opposed Hiruzen's seemingly weak decision, and to keep dissatisfaction in the village in check, he decided to step down as Hokage. This led to the selection of a new Hokage, and the hero of the Great War, Namikaze Minato, became the Fourth. With Hiruzen's retirement as Hokage, the village inched toward recovery after the tumult of the war.

Tsukiko had a very clear goal in mind: "Become strong enough to protect those you love." Her determination was only overshadowed by Itachi's.

Despite her initial reaction to him, Tsukiko soon came to really admire how strong the older boy was, and how he took the time to get her caught up to him so they could train together.

At first, Tsukiko had been less than useless. She had never been taught any ninja arts other than her dances, and had to rely heavily on Itachi's impatient instruction.

Once she had learned what he knew, however, she became infinitely more useful. Her dances were actually forms of martial arts, and she soon discovered that her graceful movements worked offensively and defensively. She taught what she could to Itachi, and he mimicked the rest. Soon the two of them had developed drills that made use of the quick movements, eliminating the flowery "dancing" motions and focusing strictly on the combat style. Tsukiko however, couldn't lose the rhythm practiced with her parents, and was a lot more graceful and flowing than Itachi, who was already just as fast and controlled as her.

They trained every morning, without exception. Itachi always led the way and was usually in a hurry to get started. This morning, however, Tsukiko was trying to memorize the twisting route Itachi took, and was slowing to look for landmarks.

"What's wrong?" Itachi asked, slowing his pace. He was very mature for his age, and it was hard to believe he was only a month older than her. He was wearing his usual outfit, a blue-grey shirt and dark grey pants with the standard blue sandals worn by shinobi.

It had taken Tsukiko quite some time to get used to the high-collared shirts used by the Uchiha clan for training, but she soon found that she liked ducking into them like a turtle. Compromise. So, she was dressed similarly to Itachi, with a dark blue shirt instead of blue-grey. She thought the dark color looked good against her long white hair.

Tsukiko shrugged. "I always follow you to where we train. I want to know the way too, so I can keep up with you."

Itachi shook his head. "You're strange." Even so, he slowed down and pointed out some of the landmarks he used. He was always kind like that, despite his brusque nature, and Tsukiko was happy to have met someone like him.

The children in her old village thought she was a freak, and hurt her. Here, she was welcomed, even envied. Never before had she had a friend her age, but what else could she call Itachi? She knew he couldn't wait to develop the Sharingan that was famous in the Uchiha clan, yet was kind enough to help her train her own powers.

They practiced their forms and movements for hours, creating new scenarios in which they drilled maneuvers known and made-up. By the time they were tired, they were covered in sweat and dirt, and the sun was well on its way to setting.

"Itachi?" Tsukiko asked on the way back home, the late afternoon sky making the trees cast long shadows. "Why do you want to be so strong?" She hadn't dared to ask earlier, worried that he would think it rude.

They walked side by side, exhausted. Tsukiko had managed to create and hold a flame in her palm for nearly a minute, a new record for her, while Itachi had worked on his accuracy using small stones aimed at targets. Confident in his aim, he wanted to ask his father about how to properly hold a shuriken. At Tsukiko's question, he turned an expressionless face to her.

"I want to become the greatest ninja ever, and eliminate war from this world."

His desire might've seemed grandiose and childish to an adult, but to another child, especially one who's seen the effects of war first-hand, it was incredible.

Tsukiko's eyes widened, and she smiled excitedly. "You can definitely do that, Itachi! You're already amazing, and we haven't even entered the academy yet!"

Itachi smiled back at her, making her even happier. Itachi rarely smiled, but it was hard to resist Tsukiko. She often brought a grin to the expressionless child's face, which made her feel special.

"You think so?" He asked, intrigued that someone else believed in him. Everyone else he'd mentioned his dream to, his parents and a few kids his age, had treated it like a joke, or a game he would quickly grow bored of.

"Absolutely!" Tsukiko affirmed. "And since I want to be strong too, I'll protect you and help you achieve your dream! That way, everyone will be safe and happy!" She darted forward and gave the older boy a hug.

He froze in her arms, and she pulled back, giggling. "You look like a statue!"

He blinked at her, then began to laugh with her, his small body shaking with mirth.

The two children laughed and played tag on the way home, using their limited ninja skills to race after the other or gracefully dodge an outstretched arm.

"We're home."

Itachi quietly slipped off his shoes in the entryway and walked slowly down the hallway, Tsukiko behind him. Once they had reached the Uchiha compound, their laughter died, and they became properly solemn children, befitting Fugaku Uchiha's son and ward.

"How was your day?" Mikoto called when they passed the kitchen. Her stomach was even more swollen, a new life growing in her womb.

'Will it be a boy? Or a girl?'

Tsukiko was excited. She hadn't had any siblings, but she already thought of the unborn child as a little brother or sister. Itachi was excited too, she could tell. His eyes would brighten when the topic of his soon-to-be-born sibling came up.

"Were you training again today?"

"Yeah," Itachi replied, at the same time Tsukiko said, "Yes, ma'am."

Mikoto smiled at them. She had told Tsukiko to call her by name, but the girl insisted on using "ma'am" and "sir" to address her foster parents.

"Is Dad in his room?" Itachi asked.

"He is, but right now's a little…" Mikoto started, but Itachi was already stepping toward his father's room. He still had a question about his shuriken and wanted an answer right away.

Tsukiko bowed her head to Mikoto and hurried after Itachi nervously. In truth, she was a little frightened by the stern Fugaku, and would rather avoid him when possible.

"Why should the Fourth be Minato?!" The fierce voice on the other side of the closed sliding door stopped both children in their tracks.

"You don't know who could be listening," Fugaku warned in his even tone. "Keep your voice down, Yashiro."

"But I just can't accept it. The only name other than Minato put forward for the selection of the Fourth was Lord Orochimaru!"

Tsukiko felt a shiver down her spine at the ninja's name. The three who had rescued her had gone on to be named The Legendary Sannin and were quite popular in the village, but Tsukiko couldn't shake her fear of the snake-like man. She had developed a phobia of snakes as well, and couldn't help but freeze whenever she saw one. It was something she'd have to work on if she wanted to be a shinobi, but for now, she was terrified of the slithering creatures.

"Why did not a single person say your name, Lord Fugaku?" The man named Yashiro demanded of Itachi's father.

In Tsukiko's head, Yashiro's face popped up. A man with narrow eyes and closely cropped white hair. Although he was older than Itachi's father, he served him as a subordinate.

"It's just as you say, Yashiro. I cannot accept this either," a new voice spoke.

"Inabi…" Fugaku said, trailing off.

Uchiha Inabi was a leading ninja in the Konoha Military Police Force. His distinguishing feature was his long black hair. He was also Itachi's father's subordinate. "Ninja from the other lands trembled at the mention of 'Wicked Eye' Fugaku during the Great War."

"The head of the Konoha Military Police Force. That is my position in the village."

"There's talk it's all the administration's plan!" Yashiro shouted, and then spat out, "Village officials don't want the Uchiha clan standing on the center stage. They said nothing in the village about all the work you did during the Great War, Lord Fugaku. Because of that, it was Minato and the Sannin, and even Hatake Kakashi-who has the Sharingan despite not being a member of the clan-who shone. And what did you get? Some war-orphaned brat who can't even control her powers yet!"

Tsukiko pulled back, stung. She was little! How was she supposed to control her power? No one was teaching her! Angry tears welled up in her eyes, and she felt her power surge, as it usually did when she was upset. This time, she fought it down viciously, trying to suppress the anger she felt at their cruel words.

"If the people can make a fuss over Minato and Kakashi, then your name should also-"

"Enough." Fugaku's controlled voice cut Yashiro off. "The children are listening."

Itachi winced slightly, glancing worriedly at Tsukiko. He was likely thinking what she was. The older men weren't going to be happy that the "war-orphaned brat" had been listening.

"What is it, Itachi?"

Gritting his teeth, obviously annoyed over having been caught, Itachi pushed the sliding door open, gesturing for Tsukiko to step out of view.

She stepped back, craning her head to glance inside the room. There were four men, including Itachi's father. Yashiro, Inabi, and one more, a man with a dot on his forehead. Another subordinate, Uchiha Tekka.

"What is it?"

"I wanted to ask you about shuriken and kunai."

"I'm busy right now. Ask me later."

"All right." Itachi quickly slid the door shut as he spoke, his young face betraying his concern.

The instant it was almost entirely closed, a crimson light grew in the eyes of the four men. Sharingan. The kekkei genkai inherited by members of the Uchiha clan.

Both children ran to Itachi's room, frightened. Or at least, Tsukiko was. Her Gensogan faded, and she shivered at the sensation that filled the air in Lord Fugaku's room. For some reason, it brought to her mind the empty farming village, a place filled with the anticipation of blood being spilled. And the body of her mother, drained of all that had made her warm and loving. The aura hanging over the men in that room was the same ominous feeling she got in the farming village. The feeling of a battle yet to start.

"What is Father thinking…?" Itachi murmured.  
Tsukiko didn't reply, but couldn't stop herself from hugging the older boy, needing to feel a positive human contact. This time he returned her hug, creating the picture of frightened children looking for something good to hold on to.

* * *

A.N. Aaaand that's it for today! A little more past than present, but I have a lot to catch up on. Some chapters may consist entirely of the past, so be ready for that.  
Now, Itachi may seem a touch OOC, but please remember that he is still a little kid. He deserves to have fun and be a little playful. Laughter is good for him!

Also, these are past sequences, though they may seem like Tsukiko's memories. Some are, for sure, but others will switch to Itachi's POV.

Please tell me what you think!


	5. Chapter 4

A.N. Happy Valentine's Day! My gift to all my wonderful readers is a new chapter! Yay!

Thank you guys for all the support this story has gotten. My update schedule will be really wonky, but I want to get a chapter out every week or two. We'll see. I have a ton of stuff going on. But, I LOVE Itachi, so you can count on me to do what I can!

*************  
NOW:

"Good morning!" Tsukiko said brightly, strolling up to the two girls waiting for her. Instead of the normal classroom meetup, she had requested that her new team wait at the northern gate of the village. Knowing that the two had likely never been out of Konoha's borders, she planned on taking them on a tour of the surrounding wilderness to help them familiarize themselves with the territory.

"Good morning," Midori greeted politely, her green eyes dancing with excitement. Her gold hair was pulled up in a ponytail, and she was dressed in a dark green kunoichi outfit.

"Morning," Chiyo echoed, bouncing in place. Besides her two braids, her short, choppy hair was fluttering in the slight breeze. She was dressed in a dark purple kunoichi uniform, a huge grin stretched across her face at the sight of Tsukiko.

"Awesome! We get a cool sensei!"

Tsukiko smiled at the praise, happy that so far, everyone seemed to be getting along.

"Alright, Team Eleven," she said, trying out their name for the first time. "My name is Tsukiko Amaya, and I will be your sensei. Today, I thought we'd do our usual meet-and-greet before—yes Midori?"

Shyly, Midori looked around. "Sorry Tsukiko-Sensei. It's just...are we missing a member?"

Tsukiko frowned, remembering that she would also be babysitting a rival ninja. "As a matter of fact, Midori, we are. You see, you girls are so talented, that you will actually have another jounin as a teammate."

Midori looked confused, but Chiyo jumped up high into the air. "Hell yeah! We rock!"

"But...isn't that really unusual?" Midori asked, uneasy. "I mean, I don't really know about Chiyo, but I'm not that talented."

"You're stronger than you think," Tsukiko encouraged.

"You girls just have very specialized skills that need specific teaching. I'm your primary sensei, but Masuko-Sensei will be helping Chiyo with controlling and using her chakra in the most efficient way, while you and I will work on medical ninjutsu training and extreme chakra control. Make sense?"

Midori's expression cleared, and she nodded. "Okay, Sensei."

Tsukiko smiled and looked around. "Now if we could just find our missing teammate…"

Summoned by her words, a team of Anbu Black Ops dropped down from the sky, landing lightly about forty feet away. Their leader, a male with a fox mask, stepped forward.

"Amaya, Tsukiko," he said formally. "Are you prepared to accept—"

The Anbu shinobi was cut off by Tsukiko's sudden appearance in front of him. "Shut up!" She hissed. "It'll be bad for my team to see their other sensei escorted in by Anbu and it be announced that she's in my custody."

She couldn't see his expression under the mask, It she hoped he had the decency to be embarrassed. His cool tone when he spoke, however, suggested otherwise.  
"Very well. Shall we retreat further into the forest?"

Tsukiko nodded, turning to look over her shoulder at her team. "Wait here, girls. There's something I need to do."

Without waiting for an answer, she followed the masked Shinobi for little over a half a mile before they stopped.

"I take it this is acceptable?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Perfectly. Sorry to interrupt your little speech. Please continue."

Fox-mask straightened. "Amaya, Tsukiko, Are you prepared to accept custody of former Mist ninja, Masuko Arashi? If you agree, you are responsible for ensuring that she does nothing suspicious or that in will any way prove detrimental to the Leaf Village. Failure to keep her in line could result in severe punishment. Do you accept?"

"I do," she said stiffly.

The man nodded, signaling the other shinobi. "Bring her here."

The rest of the team leapt away, leaving Tsukiko with Fox-mask. "When she arrives, we leave her to you," he said. "Her apartment will be guarded by the Anbu, but from the moment she reports for training or missions, she's your responsibility."

"Got it, got it," Tsukiko said, unconcerned. Despite her incredible chakra and physical abilities, Tsukiko wasn't worried. She'd be able to keep Masuko in line, no problem.

The Anbu soon returned, a woman with dark purple hair in the center of their formation. Tsukiko recognized her instantly from the photo in her file.

'Masuko Arashi'

Said ninja landed evenly in front of Tsukiko. "Hiya, kid. Are you gonna take me to my squad leader?" Her voice was slightly deeper than Tsukiko guessed was normal. She put up a bold front, but it was clear Masuko wasn't one hundred percent healed from her words or interrogation.

Not intimidated in the slightest, the younger woman met the former Mist ninja's gaze evenly, her voice calm, but firm.

"My name is Tsukiko Amaya, and I am your squad leader."  
Masuko looked at her incredulously. It was somewhat understandable, when comparing the differences between them.

Tsukiko was eighteen years old, five-foot-five, and despite her fit form, looked rather delicate in comparison to the tough Masuko.

The former Mist ninja was rather pretty, but equally intimidating. She was twenty-five, around five-foot-nine, and her physique left no doubt that she was dangerous. Masuko wasn't overly muscular, but was completely toned with little to no trace of fat. This, coupled with her glare, made it a lot more obvious how she survived her ordeal.

She was clearly a badass.

"You've gotta be kidding me!" She scoffed, looking Tsukiko up and down. "They think that, after everything I went through, should I prove to be a spy, you can stop me?"

Her sentence was punctuated by glares to the watching Anbu.

Tsukiko watched her calmly, a serene smile on her features. "Interesting, isn't it? Anyway, I'm Tsukiko Amaya, your superior from this point on. It's nice to meet you, Masuko."

The older woman looked at her speculatively. "You must have some tricks up your sleeve, hm? Well, where I come from, teammates often spar to see who's the most qualified to lead. Wanna find out?"

Tsukiko glanced at the waiting Anbu. 'I see. Well, I'd better give them something to report back to Danzo, shouldn't I?'

"Where you come from, they kill innocent ninja for no reason," Tsukiko said lightly, her smile bright. "But I don't mind engaging in a local custom if it'll make you feel at home in the Leaf."

Masuko smiled back, revealing that one canine was sharper and slightly longer than the other, like a fang. Her blue eyes watched Tsukiko murderously. "Thanks for the hospitality. I just don't think I could serve under someone with hair that long. Honestly woman, anyone could grab that, and then you're finished!"

Tsukiko widened her stance defensively, seeing that the older woman was about to strike. "I'll let you in on a secret," she said with a wink, knowing it would further piss Masuko off. "No one's ever been able to grab it."

With that, Tsukiko made the first move. Her defensive stance had lowered Masuko's guard, making her think the younger ninja would wait to block the first attack, but nothing was farther than the truth.

Tsukiko's eyes turned green, and her heel turned sharply in the dirt, her other foot stomping down hard.

Faster than she could think, Masuko found herself sucked underground, her head the only part of her remaining above the dirt.

"My, my," Masuko growled through gritted teeth. "That's some trick of yours. Let me show you one of mine!"

With a shout of rage, her body was covered in the blue glow of her chakra, and she burst out of the ground as easily as it it had been paper. Spinning toward Tsukiko, Masuko pulled her fist back to land a blow that would definitely break something.

Tsukiko's eyes turned gold, and she shot a blast of air at the older ninja that pushed her off course, allowing her to dodge the punch.

'She's definitely strong, but she's over-exerting herself,' Tsukiko thought, sending a rock her way. 'She's not recovered nearly enough for this kind of fight. I need to end this quickly, before she seriously injures herself and I have to explain to Chiyo that her sensei was beat up by her other sensei.'

Masuko smashed easily through the rock, looking to see where Tsukiko was. Spotting her a few feet away, the former Mist ninja let out a howl of rage and slammed her fist into Tsukiko's face.

Tsukiko exploded into a mass of crows, each of them cawing loudly and pecking at the defenseless woman.  
"What the—?!"

The crows dispelled, leaving Masuko confused and scratched. Remembering her enemy, she looked around wildly before feeling something sharp at her throat.

"How about we call it at that?" Tsukiko asked mildly, her kunai pressed firmly against Masuko's neck.

Masuko stiffened, then sighed in disappointment. "Alright, sure."

When Tsukiko removes the knife, Masuko turned to her, a new respect on her face. "Nice moves. So you're the Gensogan user, eh? Just my luck they'd stick me with you." She smiled and stuck out her hand. "Nice ta meetcha, partner."

Tsukiko smiled wryly and accepted the gesture of peace. 'She's the "We fight to make friends" type, I see. Let's just hope she and Guy don't run into each other any time soon.'

She glanced back at the Anbu team, raising an eyebrow. "Was there anything else?"

Fox-mask made a signal with his hand and they all scattered, no doubt to report to Danzo, the head of the Anbu.

"Assholes," Tsukiko muttered.

Masuko let out a burst of surprised laughter. "You know what? I think we'll get along just fine!"

The white-haired shinobi smiled warmly. "I think so too. Anyway, the girls are waiting about half a mile that way, so—"

"What?!" Masuko exclaimed. "Our team's been waiting on me this whole time?! Geez, tell me earlier, will ya? I wouldn't have wasted so much time!" And with that, she turned and sprinted in the direction Tsukiko pointed out.

Sighing, Tsukiko did the same. 'I guess that's one way to motivate her.'

Chiyo and Midori were waiting for their return, patiently in the blond girl's case and impatiently in the dark-haired girl's case.

"Finally!" Chiyo shouted, seeing them. "You were gone forever, Tsukiko-Sensei!"

"Sorry, sorry! I just had to help Masuko-Sensei find her way here."

Chiyo turned wide eyes to Masuko. "Whoa! You're cool-looking!"

Masuko preened under the praise. "Thank you Chiyo. I've been reading up on you, and you have quite the chakra! Tell me, do you have trouble controlling it?" Her voice was gentle and playful, and she winked mischievously.

Tsukiko nodded in approval as Chiyo and Masuko began to have a discussion on utilizing large chakras. She turned to Midori.

"And I take it you want to be a medical ninja?"

The shy girl's eyes lit up. "Yes!" Then, it was like she was a completely different person. Midori launched into a conversation of the ins and outs of medical ninjutsu, outlining that her chakra control was nowhere near precise enough to use her clan's techniques.

After about ten minutes, Tsukiko nodded in understanding. "Alright, Midori. I'll do some brainstorming tonight and we'll come up with some exercises suited to chakra manipulation."

Midori beamed.

"Alright, Team Eleven!" Tsukiko said, getting the attention of the other two. "Let's actually start this meet-and-greet!"

Masuko and Chiyo came over, and Tsukiko directed Chiyo to sit on the grass near Midori.

"Okay, I want us all to introduce ourselves and tell everyone a few facts. Interests, likes, hates, whatever. The one I want everyone to say, however, are fears."

"Fears?" Chiyo questioned, wrinkling her nose.

"We're a team," Tsukiko explained. "Which means we're only as strong as our weaknesses. It's good to know what situations or fears affect each of us, because they affect the team as a whole."

Chiyo nodded reluctantly. "Alright."

"I'll start." Tsukiko knew that no one liked to discuss fears, as those could be deeply personal, but it would be an excellent way to build trust.

"My name is Tsukiko Amaya, and I am your team head," she began easily. "My favorite color is red, I'm interested in honing my abilities, so you'll find me training every free second. I love sweet things, especially dango, and to read. I hate anyone who would hurt innocent people, and also those too lazy or unmotivated to do what they have to."

While they were listening, Tsukiko could tell her genin were distracted, caught up in what they would admit about themselves.

"My greatest fear is...losing my family again."

Instantly, everyone's attention was locked on her, and Tsukiko forced herself to continue, trying to avoid painful memories. "Twice in my life, my family has been murdered. I've managed to pull myself back my grief both times, but I don't know if I can do it a third time." She raised her head to meet both genin's eyes and then Masuko's. "For better or worse, this team is my family. Believe me when I say that I will protect you all with my life."

Then fearing that she had been too heavy, as the air was thick with emotion, she coughed and added, "Also snakes. I'm terrified of snakes."

The tension snapped in half, and all three of Tsukiko's teammates burst into laughter.

"Wait, wait, wait," Masuko said, holding her sides. "You live in the Leaf Village! Aren't there snakes everywhere?"

Tsukiko took the teasing goodnaturedly, defending herself laughingly. "I'm not talking about a little grass snake!" She raised her arms menacingly, much to the delight of the genin. "I'm talking about snakes so big they'll swallow you in one gulp!"

Masuko stepped back worriedly, looking around. "And there are...a lot of those here?"

"Only in certain areas," Tsukiko said evilly. "Of course, I'll make sure to point them out on our little tour. Who knows, maybe we'll see one."

Unable to tell if she was joking or not, Masuko turned back to the genin, her expression clearing. "My turn! Alright, my name is Masuko Arashi, and if Tsukiko hasn't told you, I'm from the Hidden Mist Village."

Chiyo's eyes widened, and Midori tilted her head.

"But...you wear a Leaf headband…"

Masuko crossed her arms, nodding. "True. I'm a loyal Leaf Ninja now, but my home was once the Mist Village. You guys deserve to know that if we're going to be working together. You should never be ashamed of your past, unless you let it dictate your actions. I'm making a new start in this village, and I'm determined to go the best I can."

She paused for a moment, cocking her head. "Anyway, my favorite color is light blue, I love cute things, and hate seafood. My greatest fear is being betrayed. When I trust someone, I trust them for life. For someone to take advantage of that is despicable."

Tsukiko bumped her shoulder against Masuko's. "I agree...but if you think you're getting away with me not commenting on seafood, you can think again."

Now it was her turn to tease.

"You lived in the Mist! You guys probably eat seafood all the time!"

Masuko shuddered. "We did. I just...I just can't stand the taste of fish! It will definitely make me vomit!" She glared at all of them. "I'm trusting you, so you better not use it against me!"

Chiyo laughed. "Okay, my turn. My name is Chiyo Mitsuru, and my favorite color is red." She smiled at Tsukiko. "I love fighting and training, but I hate people who think they're better just because they win. I'm interested in learning about other villages and fostering good relations."

Tsukiko blinked in surprise. She had marked Chiyo down as mostly athletic, and had no idea that she was interested in diplomacy. "That's fantastic!" She praised.

Chiyo blushed, looking down at her shoes. "As for my fear...Well, my family isn't all that well known, but they've all been really good shinobi, and want to gain more attention. 'Chiyo' means 'one thousand generations,' and my parents named me that in the hopes that I would help make my Clan be remembered for at least that long. They push me really hard, so...I guess my greatest fear is letting them down."

Masuko wrapped her arm around Chiyo's shoulders. "Don't worry! There's no way you could let them down, as long as you stay true to yourself!"

She met Tsukiko's gaze and raised an eyebrow.

Tsukiko nodded, thinking hard. If need be, she'd have a word with Chiyo's parents. If they tried to force her to be a fighter over say, a diplomat, it would only hurt Chiyo in the long-run.

"What about you, Midori?" Masuko asked gently.

"My name is Midori Hisoka," she said quietly, pulling at her pants. "My favorite color is purple, I like sweet things and spicy things, as well as studying medical ninjutsu. I hate people who hurt others for no reason, and my greatest fear is being in a situation where someone dies while I'm trying to help them. I...I couldn't bear knowing that I could've saved them...or worse, knowing that no matter what I did, they would still die."

Tsukiko nodded sympathetically. "That's a legitimate fear in our line of work," she said, hugging the blond genin. "And we will lose comrades in our lifetime. We will lose people we love, people we care about. But we save far more lives than we lose, which is something to be proud of."

Chiyo jumped up determinedly. "Don't worry, Midori! Together, we'll be the greatest team ever!"

Midori smiled, wiping her eyes. "Yeah."

Tsukiko smiled proudly, protectiveness surging in her chest. 'This is my team, my family.'

* * *

Then:

Almost five years old. Tsukiko had now spent nearly a year in the Leaf Village, and saw the place as her home. She was still uncomfortable around Lord Fugaku, but she liked Lady Mikoto quite a bit. And of course, Itachi. She had become quite adept at reading his expressions, and found herself enjoying her time with him more and more.  
Itachi, in turn, had grudgingly admitted that she was an extremely talented fighter and an excellent sparring partner. In the last few months, their training had become more teamwork-based, the two moving in perfect sync with the other to pull off complicated moves.

Tsukiko liked her life in the Leaf, but she often felt lonely. Her parents had always been affectionate and happy, neither of which described the Uchiha Clan. She rarely saw Fugaku, and though he was kind, he was very strict. Mikoto was generally happy, but she was busy preparing for the new baby, and didn't have a lot of time to spend with her.

And despite all the time she spent with him, Tsukiko didn't really know much about Itachi. He always seemed to be distant, giving Tsukiko the sense that, given the choice, Itachi would rather be alone than with her. And the other children in the village, while friendly, didn't have the same interests as her. They cared about playing over training, which was understandable, considering their age. Itachi was the only one who understood her, but he wasn't the friendliest person in the world. Tsukiko doubted sometimes that he even liked her, and had started to become as silent as him, knowing that her chattering likely annoyed him.

And there were the nightmares.

Memories of her parents' deaths seemed to force themselves into her dreams quite often, and she would wake up in the bedroom she shared with Itachi in a panic, her Gensogan activated. Every time this happened, she would escape the confines of the house and sit on the front porch, closing her eyes to let the wind soothe her tear-stained cheeks. It was in these times that she could almost pretend she was back home, sitting next to her parents and listening to the crickets chirp.

It was on one such summer night that Tsukiko found herself sitting outside, her quiet sobs mixing with the nightly sounds of the village. She was curled into a ball, clutching at her knees as she rocked back and forth.

'I want my mom. I want my dad. I want to go home.'

These wishes echoed over and over in her head until she thought she'd go mad. It had been an exhausting day of training, and her nerves were strained from the glares of the older Uchihas. They definitely didn't like her, and she couldn't understand why. Was it because of her Gensogan? Was she again hated for simply being born?  
Movement behind her made Tsukiko freeze in alarm, her sobs catching in her throat.

"It's only me."

'Itachi.'

Tsukiko turned her head in his direction, her eyes closed as she gave him a watery smile, not wanting to see if he was annoyed. "I'm sorry, did I wake you up? It's nothing, you can go back to sleep."

There was a long pause, making her think that perhaps he took her advice, before she felt him settle down next to her.

Her eyes snapped open and she looked at him curiously. "Is something wrong?"

"I'm sorry," he said abruptly, a faint pink covering his cheeks as he looked straight ahead.

"What?"

"About your parents. About...everything. I'm sorry."

Tsukiko lowered her gaze, her eyes tearing up again. "I just really miss them sometimes. I like living here, but...it's just so...different."

He looked at her, and she saw a flash of panic on his normally expressionless face. "Don't cry!"

She blinked, tilting her head. "Huh?"

"I don't like it when you cry," he admitted, his cheeks pink. "Or when you're upset."

Tsukiko stared, her eyes wide. "Are you—Are you worried about me?"

Now it was his turn to look confused. "Of course I am. Why shouldn't I be? You come out here almost every night to cry, and I don't know how to stop it."

The young girl watched him, flabbergasted as Itachi continued, his voice speeding up slightly as if panicked.  
"I thought training more would help, so I pushed us to work harder, but that seemed to make it worse. Then I thought maybe you didn't like being with me, and I tried to stay away from you. But that made it even worse!" Itachi huffed, frustrated. "I don't know what to do, and I don't like it."

Warmth spread through Tsukiko, and she laughed at his grumpy face. The young boy was always so composed and distant, it was really funny to see him lose his cool!

He stared at her a moment before shaking his head. "I really don't get you." But his lips curled up into a small smile as he watched her laugh.

"I thought you didn't like me," she admitted shyly. "And since you're the only one I like to be around, I felt really lonely."

"Of course I like you," he protested, his expression open for once. "You're the only one I can train with, and you're very strong."

Tsukiko saw the truth in his eyes and before she knew what she was doing, she was hugging him. "Thank you, Itachi. It makes me feel better to have a friend here."

He stiffened momentarily at her touch, but slowly returned the hug. "Then don't cry anymore," he whispered. "Because you have me."

Tsukiko pulled back, her eyes shining with happiness. "Okay."

Itachi relaxed at the sight of her smile. While it was true, he had been annoyed when she had first arrived in the village, he had quickly found himself looking for her whenever he wanted to train, or when he was frustrated with his slow progress. She was calming to him, a presence he didn't realize he was growing attached to before it was too late.

The first time she had woken him with her nightmares was also her first night in the village. He had shot awake, thinking someone was attacking, his mind immediately flashing to the battlefield his father had taken him to a few months previously.

After looking around a moment, he saw Tsukiko thrashing around in her sleep, her face showing her fear and anguish.

That was perhaps the first time Itachi really realized what had happened to her. His parents had been tight-lipped about it, but he knew her parents had been killed in the war. What he didn't know was that Tsukiko had been there as well, and blamed herself for it. Now, he could easily piece the story together from her murmured pleas and frightened expression.

Since then, she'd taken to leaving the room when her nightmares struck. Itachi would always be awake, listening silently to her sneak out, trying to muffle her sobs. If Tsukiko hadn't woken him up with her movements before she woke, he doubted he would have noticed her leaving. It frustrated him to no end, listening to her cry without being able to do anything.

And he noticed during the daytime how unhappy she was. Sure, she tried to smile and be friendly, but with everyday, she was becoming more and more distant.

Finally, he could take it no longer, and followed her out after a particularly bad dream.

Now, sitting silently outside with her head on his shoulder, he berated himself for not doing this sooner. She had almost instantly become happier after hearing that he cared, and he could hit himself for not realizing it sooner. She had been lonely.

Itachi was used to being alone, preferring his own company to others, so he could further his goal to become the strongest ninja in the world. But Tsukiko was used to training with her parents, both of whom were far more encouraging and supportive than Itachi had been.

'Not anymore,' he vowed. Tsukiko was an excellent partner for him, and he'd be sorry if they stopped training together. Now that their skill level had caught up, he could see that training was far more efficient and practical with her.

'And,' he admitted to himself. 'I like being with her.'

As if sensing his thoughts, Tsukiko smiled again and broke the peaceful silence. "Itachi, what's your favorite color?"

He looked down at her amused. "What?"

She shrugged. "Friends know stuff about each other, and I barely know anything about you. So, what's your favorite color?"

"Black," he answered, thinking about it a moment.

"Why?" She asked promptly, her onyx eyes doing that shiny thing they did again. When she was happy, there was a certain glow to her eyes that drew people in.

"No reason," he muttered, embarrassed. "What's your favorite color?"

"Hmm...I like black too, but I think I'll go with red," she answered thoughtfully. "Fire is my favorite element, after all."

"Fire is orange," he objected.

She shook her head. "But using it makes my eyes turn red, and it totally looks like I have the Sharingan!" She shrugged self-consciously. "It makes me feel like I'm part of the family."

An unexpected warmth hit him then, and a rare smile lit up his features. "You are a part of the family."

Her cheeks darkened as she answered his smile with one of her own. "Next question. When is your birthday?"

"June 9."

"What?! That's next week! Why didn't you say anything?!" She glared at him.

Itachi shrugged. "A birthday is merely a milestone. Just because my age increases, it doesn't mean anything changes."

"But it's fun!" Tsukiko protested. "You get presents, and your parents make you sweets to eat, and you get to do whatever you want that day!"

He decided not to argue with her. "Fine. And your birthday?"

"July 20."

"That's not far away at all," he pointed out. "Were you going to tell anyone?"

She looked away, the air suddenly awkward. "Well, everyone's so busy all the time, I just thought that…"

"You'd let something you like so much go by unnoticed?"

For some reason, he felt himself growing angry with his parents. His father was busy with Military Police work and his mother was preparing for the baby, but that was no excuse to ignore Tsukiko. They had brought her here, and they were supposed to care for her!

The two children continued asking questions, learning more and more about the other, until Tsukiko was swaying with tiredness and Itachi insisted that they go back to bed.  
Tsukiko agreed, and quickly fell into a dreamless sleep, Itachi now a comforting presence that kept the nightmares at bay.

* * *

Itachi's birthday had passed with a big party that he found unnecessary. Still he had accepted Tsukiko's present, a clumsily made card with a crayon-drawn picture of the two of them, with a smile.

Tsukiko still couldn't believe that Itachi thought his birthday was a waste of time. To her, it was a day when her family didn't work or train and instead spent time together. Birthdays were special.

Still, she understood that things were different here, and people were busy. She was a little upset that neither Mikoto or Fugaku seemed to know when her birthday was, but she expected the day to be like any other.

It was a surprise to her then, when she came downstairs that morning and saw Mikoto waiting with a special treat.

"Happy birthday, Tsuki!" Mikoto cried happily, holding a tray of homemade dango.

Shocked, Tsukiko stared blankly for a moment. Then, a huge grin stretched across her face and she let out a happy squeal. Running forward, she gave Mikoto a huge hug, mindful of her enormously round belly. Itachi's mother was due any day, yet another reason Tsukiko wouldn't have been surprised to have been forgotten.

"Thank you!" She exclaimed.

'They remembered!'

Mikoto laughed, then smiled sadly. "I'm sorry, Tsuki. We haven't been very good caretakers. Sometimes I think we forget how young you are. You're so mature and grown up, that it's hard to remember. I don't even think I asked you when your birthday was. If Itachi hadn't said anything, we might've missed it." She set the dango down, hugging Tsukiko tightly. "I want you to feel like part of this family."

Tsukiko nodded happily, a warm feeling in her chest. When Mikoto released her, she turned shyly to Itachi, who was standing next to the table, looking at his feet.

"Thank you, Itachi," She said happily, her face warm.

The boy nodded, then held out a card, just as clumsy as the one she had made. His face was pink, and his smile shy. "Happy birthday," he said simply.

Tsukiko accepted the card, then hugged Itachi, the boy who'd quickly become her best friend.

"Aw," Mikoto cooed, smiling at the two. "Come on, you need to eat your dango."

Excited, she sat down, dragging Itachi with her. The young girl absolutely loved dango, almost as much as him. She immediately grabbed one of the sticks and took a bite of the delicious mocha treat. "It's amazing!" She declared, making Mikoto laugh.

At that moment, Fugaku entered, frowning at a paper in his hand.

Tsukiko froze, unsure if she was doing something wrong. Normally, it was impolite to start eating before the head of the household. But, Mikoto had told her to start, so she wasn't sure if she was in trouble or not.

"Good morning," the stern man said, raising his gaze to take in the scene. His eyes stopped on Tsukiko, and the half-eaten dango in her hand. "Ah, that's right. Happy birthday, Tsukiko," he said, smiling at her.

The warm feeling inside Tsukiko returned full force, and she respectfully bowed her head. "Good morning, sir. Thank you."

They all ate together, and talked about anything and everything. Fugaku was warm and kind, while Mikoto was funny and motherly. It was the first time Tsukiko felt like she belonged in the family, like they truly cared about her.

'I'm proud to be part of this clan.'

* * *

A.N. Yay! New chapter! Some fluff, some angst, new characters...I hope you guys like it!

I hope you guys like Masuko. She's an OC designed by my sister whose head over heels for a certain shark shinobi. I WONDER who she will be paired with...you guessed it. Iruka.

No, not really.

Anyway, Chiyo and Midori will also be finding love, but it will be downplayed as I hope to someday in the future write separate fics for the two of them. If you can guess their future love interests, I'll be impressed. Chiyo has a bit of groundwork laid, but I doubt you'll be able to guess Midori's!

Anyway, Happy Valentine's Day! Be sure to spend it with the people you love, whether it be friends, family, or even fictional crushes! I myself will be replaying Mystic Messenger...ah, I love Zen!


	6. Chapter 5

**A.N. Hey, everyone! Sorry for the wait, but I had some unexpected drama at school and within my family that put writing on the backburner for me. I hope this makes up for it!**

 **DISCLAIMER: I own nothing except my OCs. Itachi, Naruto, and all that heartbreak belongs to Kishimoto. Thanks!**

THEN:

Tsukiko's eyes widened in wonder at the sight before her, taking place a mere two days after her birthday. Itachi, kneeling next to her, had a very similar expression of disbelief and awe.

They were in a private room in the house, normally empty. Today, however, there had been many people coming in and out of the small wooden room, as it was where something very exciting had occurred. Tsukiko and Itachi had been waiting patiently all day to go inside, their nervous energy making them jumpy. Now however, they were still.

"So?" Mikoto asked, lying on a futon, exhaustion evident in her voice. She looked weary, paler than usual with a light sheen of sweat on her face. Nevertheless she waited proudly as she watched her children greet the newest addition to their family.

Neither of them responded and instead sat, legs tucked underneath, staring at the creature before them.

The tiny newborn baby seemed to be intently focused on understanding his situation, while his unseeing eyes wandered around the empty space. He was wrapped up tightly, his pudgy face calm as his large head moved back and forth.

Itachi gently touched the baby's cheek, his hand trembling slightly for fear of hurting the child with his strength.

At the sudden feeling, the infant twitched with surprise. Shocked by this reaction, Itachi pulled his hand away and Tsukiko jumped slightly. Mikoto giggled softly as she watched them, her tired eyes bright with us shed tears of happiness.

Tsukiko felt brave enough to touch the baby's hand, which he had wriggled out of his bindings with a singular determination. Gently, she poked the small grasping hand, nearly jumping again at the surprisingly strong force of the infant's grip on her finger. She looked up at Itachi wonderingly, her eyes widening further in awe. He returned her look, his lips curling up in a smile at her ridiculous expression.

"Sasuke."

Mikoto's voice, filled with a mother's pride, sent a splash of warmth through Tsukiko, and the stirrings of an unfamiliar sensation of protectiveness.

"Sasuke…" Itachi murmured, gently touching the baby's cheek a second time.

"Sasuke," Tsukiko echoed. The moment she gave voice to that name, the warm feeling inside her morphed into an indescribable emotion. Different from the love she felt for her deceased parents, different from the love she felt for her friends and new family. In the end, five-year-old Tsukiko couldn't put the feeling into words. But faced with this child, so fragile, like he would shatter if she touched him, a sense of responsibility, an instinct to protect, activated within her. Here was someone she could grow stronger for, someone she could love with everything she had. Someone who needed her.

Nearly overwhelmed by the feeling, she turned her head to look at Itachi. The fire in his eyes met her gaze, and she saw a kindred desire to protect the tiny creature before them.

"Itachi, Tsukiko," Mikoto said gently. "Take care of your baby brother, hmm?"

Itachi nodded fiercely, and Tsukiko smiled. "Yes ma'am."

 _'Sasuke. My little brother.'_

**************  
Given new incentive, a purpose, Itachi and Tsukiko threw themselves into their training with a frightening intensity. They had just one more year until the long-awaited start at the academy. Tsukiko had the sole goal of becoming stronger than anyone else, save perhaps Itachi. She would fight to protect Itachi's dream, the dream of ridding the world of fighting.

Fugaku and the other Uchiha believed that ninja could only exist in a world of killing. Tsukiko and Itachi set out to prove him wrong.

After all, as Itachi had explained to her, if you had greater strength, you could step in between people to stop them from fighting. If you were a ninja more powerful than the ninja at war, if no shinobi-however skilled-stood a chance against you, then everyone would listen to and obey your commands.

Itachi wanted to be that kind of ninja. He believed that if he was more powerful, more capable than anyone else, he would be able to stop even enormous fights like the last Great War.

Tsukiko wanted to remain by his side. She wanted to help him bring peace to the world, wanted to be strong enough to stand by Itachi proudly. After all, she had told him during training, if one ninja stronger than anyone else could stop fighting, then what could two do?

They used a grove near their house as a training ground. Wooden targets hung on the cedar trees in the cluster surrounding them. Each was about the size of a human head, with two black circles drawn on it.

Itachi and Tsukiko stood back to back in the deserted wood, kunai tucked between his fingers. Four in each hand, the eight kunai were his weapon of choice. As for Tsukiko, she held her hands up carefully, her eyes yellow. Wind would be her weapon.

She narrowed her eyes, focusing on the air around her fingertips, willing it to spin and build up power.

"Haah…" she heard Itachi sigh as he closed his eyes and slowly pushed the air out of his lungs from the bottom of his stomach. He was ready.

She crouched in sync with him, the air around her fingers spinning wildly like small tornadoes. Sucking in a ragged breath, Tsukiko focused on her hands, the chakra inside her carefully directed to her fingers.

Tsukiko kicked at the ground as hard as she could, perfectly in time with Itachi. Her body danced in the air as she flipped upside down, now facing Itachi. She watched as he held his arms to his chest, then shot his kunai out on both sides, eight flashes of light scattered in eight different directions.

A half second behind him, Tsukiko willed the tornadoes of wind after the kunai, throwing her hands out in a similar manner. The spinning air hit the handles of the weapons, giving them a powerful boost of speed and therefore, strength.

 _Thk! Thk! Thk!_ The sound echoed all around Tsukiko as she landed upright, brushing a few loose strands of hair out of her eyes.

Each blade had pierced the center of its target, sunk hilt-deep into the wood.

Pride filled Tsukiko, and she grinned at Itachi. They really were stronger as a team.

"Nice work." A young-sounding voice suddenly came from behind her.

She spun around to see a boy with black spiky hair and the flat black eyes of the Uchiha Clan standing at the edge of the grove. He was clearly older than them. As proof of that, the silver of a Konoha headband shone on the boy's forehead.

 _'A shinobi!'_

"How old are you?" The boy asked.

Tsukiko studied him suspiciously. She didn't know his name, but she had seen him before when she had accompanied Mikoto on errands. He however, unlike others of his age, had never been rude to her.

"Five," Itachi answered, a faint edge to his voice. While they weren't technically breaking any rules by practicing with the kunai, he knew his mother thought they were only throwing them at targets. If word got to her that they were trying complicated movements that essentially had him shooting weapons all over the forest, he doubted she would be pleased.

"That kind of mastery of kunai at your age?" He shook his head, whistling softly in admiration. "And teamwork? You guys are really something, huh?" The boy stretched out his hand. "Uchiha Shisui."

"I'm-"

"I know. Itachi and Tsukiko. Military Police Chief Fugaku's kid and ward."

He was very friendly, which was...odd. Most people stayed out of their way, either put-off by their intensity or uninterested in honing ninja skills. Evidently their confusion showed, since Shisui shrugged unapologetically.

"I heard you were strange kids and don't really talk to anyone. You really are stubborn, huh?"

"If you don't need anything…" Itachi trailed off suggestively, obviously impatient for the boy to leave. They only had so long to train everyday, and it was annoying to have to wait for this gawking older boy to take a hint.

"Well, I wouldn't say that." The smiling Shisui disappeared, his after-image blurring.

 _'Wow!'_ Tsukiko's eyes chased after his aura, impresses that he'd gone from no movement to such a high speed with no warning.

Above them.

As he danced up into the air like the children had moments earlier, both of Shisui's arms flew out, and eight flashes of light shot past their eyes.

"Whoa!" Itachi's surprised exclamation left his mouth before he even realized he'd said anything.

"Awesome!" Tsukiko clapped and jumped up and down, her smile practically stretching from ear to ear. "You're so fast!".

"How was that?" Shisui grinned as he landed. "I'm not too shabby with the kunai either, right?" He brushed invisible dust off his shirt and gestured for them to take a look.

New kunai stabbed into the surface of the targets on the cedar trees, immediately to one side of the kunai Itachi plunged into them earlier. Naturally, these were the ones Shisui had thrown, and they were just as deep as the younger children's combined efforts.

"I've been watching you guys training here every day for a while now." He slowly approached, holding out his hand once more. "Let's be friends."

Shisui's voice was warm, naturally pulling Tsukiko in after being surrounded by cold distance. Itachi shook his hand, accepting the ninja's friendship, and Tsukiko was quick to follow.

"Nice meeting you, Tsukiko, Itachi."

Tsukiko returned his smile happily, excited that she had a new friend.

NOW:

"You did _what?!"_ Tsukiko shouted, a death-filled gaze trained at the wincing shinobi before her. Around her, the forest outside the western gate was completely silent, not even a breeze stirring. It was as if the world was holding its breath, waiting to see what would happen.

Kakashi Hatake, also known as the Copycat Ninja, was a tall, handsome man around eight years her senior. He had spiked grey hair, and wore the typical jounin outfit, with an added mask to cover the bottom half of his face, and his headband tilted to cover his left eye, which contained the Sharingan. He was, besides Sasuke Uchiha, the only one in the village with that power, which was the reason Tsukiko had requested he teach Sasuke.

Now however, she was regretting that decision.

"It's really not as bad as it sounds," Kakashi said, his hands raised in surrender as he tried to placate the angry woman. He was a few inches taller than her, but seemed to shrink under her fury.

"Oh really?" Tsukiko asked sarcastically, her rage mounting. "That's good. Because it sounded like you knowingly allowed three genin to fight an S-rank criminal, resulting in Sasuke's getting seriously hurt!"

Kakashi grimaced. "Okay, maybe it was that bad." His attempt at humor fell flat as her fury continued to mount.

Behind them, Tsukiko and Kakashi's teams stood wide-eyed, watching their senseis. Tsukiko's team had just returned from their own mission, a B-rank spying and information-gathering affair. Tsukiko had been unsure of taking her team on a B-rank, which had only been offered due to there being two jounin on their team, but both genin had performed admirably.

Chiyo was a talented fighter, and very adept at finding mental and physical weak points in opponents. Midori, on the other hand, was a natural strategist and leader, her quiet demeanor hiding a sharp mind. Tsukiko was so impressed, she had offered to take everyone out to lunch and was privately considering recommending them for the next Chunin exams.

And it was in this good mood that she returned from delivering a report on their latest mission, when they had heard that Sasuke's team was just arriving at the west gate. Postponing food, they decided to meet up with the other team and invite them along. Sasuke had been gone on a bodyguarding C-rank mission the last two weeks, and Tsukiko wanted to know how it'd been. That's when the bomb dropped.

Naruto Uzumaki, an energetic boy with blue eyes, blond spiky hair, and a bright orange jumpsuit, had immediately launched into how they fought against the infamous Swordsman, Zabuza of the Mist.

Panicked, Sasuke tried to shut the boy up, a cute pink-haired girl wearing a red kunoichi outfit assisting him, but the damage was done. Before Sasuke could clamp his hand over the rowdy boy, Tsukiko's face had turned cold, and she had flashed red, fiery eyes at their teacher.

"Hey, Sasuke?" Naruto whisper-yelled, a freaked-out look on his face. "Who's that lady yelling at Kakashi?"

Before Sasuke could answer, the pink-haired girl hit the back of Naruto's head. "You idiot! That's Tsukiko Amaya! She's one of the best kunoichi in the Leaf!" The girl clasped her hands together, stars in her eyes. "She's amazing!"

"Cool! I'll bet she's an awesome fighter!" Naruto exclaimed, grinning as he rubbed his head.

"She's my guardian," Sasuke muttered, sending both of his teammates into shock.

Tsukiko's team looked surprised as well.

"But she's so young!" Chiyo said, looking at her teacher with wide eyes.

Midori winced as Tsukiko continued yelling. "I don't think I've ever seen her that mad. I kinda feel bad for their sensei."

Masuko grinned knowingly, winking at the genin. "I thought Tsukiko was one of those 'Mama Bear' types." She looked thoughtful. "I guess that makes me the dad of our team?"

"Tsukiko, I understand your concern," Kakashi said, trying to calm her. "But they were all exceptional, Sasuke especially. He only got hurt because he was protecting his teammates." There was unmistakable pride in the older man's voice, which gave Tsukiko pause.

The young woman's eyes softened marginally, and she looked at Sasuke with unconcealed affection. ' _Protecting his team, huh?'_ She hadn't expected her lone wolf of a kid brother to do something like that. At least, not so soon. He had only been a part of the team for around three months, after all.

"Of course he did well," she said boastfully, her anger momentarily forgotten in the face of her pride. "He's an Uchiha, and a damn good kid. I wouldn't expect any less."

The young genin in question looked up in surprise. He had been expecting the lecture of his life for putting himself in near-fatal danger, but was instead greeted with approval.

Tsukiko measured her words carefully, wanting to encourage his teamwork, but remind him to be more cautious in the future. "I don't like the idea of you getting hurt, but I'm glad you're getting so strong, both physically and as a person."

The young ninja looked away with a huff, his cheeks slightly pink as he bit back a smile.

"Sasuke's blushing!" The pink-haired girl squealed, hearts in her eyes.

Tsukiko looked back at Kakashi with a hard glare. He, on the other hand, was not forgiven. "And what happened to Zabuza?"

Kakashi hesitated. "He's dead."

Next to her, Masuko stiffened, a look of horror flashing briefly across her face before her smile returned, forcefully plastered. Her hands shook slightly as the grey-haired ninja continued.

"He was an excellent fighter, and a worthy shinobi. It's a shame we were on opposing sides." He shot Tsukiko a meaningful glance, his gaze sliding to Masuko's quivering form.

She took the hint, gritting her teeth. "Alright, we'll continue this discussion another time," she said darkly, her voice full of promise. "I'm sure you need to report to the Hokage." Lightly, she turned to her charge. "Sasuke, I'll see you at home later, alright?"

He nodded, and Tsukiko addressed his team. "And I'm sorry to you two, for verbally assaulting your sensei."

"No problem, ma'am!" The girl said, stretching out her hand. "I'm Sakura Haruno, and it's an honor to meet you!"

 _'Sakura Haruno? Didn't Sasuke mention her when he was younger? Ah, is she one of his fangirls?'_

"Nice to meet you, Sakura," she said politely, before turning to Naruto. "And you must be—"

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki, the future Hokage!"

Tsukiko blinked at the energetic greeting, then smiled as amusement took hold. "Well then, I'm honored, Naruto." She shook his hand firmly.

He looked surprised at her friendly response, before smiling confidently. "Anyway, it was nice to meet you, but we gotta go! I want to get home in time to catch the Ramen Fairy!"

"Ramen Fairy?" Tsukiko questioned, biting her lip to stop her smile.

Both Sasuke and Sakura sighed. "Don't get him started," she said waving her hand. "He's been talking about her nonstop the whole way home!"

Chiyo and Midori laughed as Naruto rounded on them smugly. "It's not my fault I'm the only one special enough to get visited by her!"

"And who is she?" Chiyo challenged, her hands on her hips.

"She's a fairy who leaves ramen at the front door of everyone she visits," Naruto explained superiorly. "Usually on Wednesdays. Sometimes it's other food, but it's usually ramen. Not as good as Ichiraku's, but delicious! I saw her once when I was little, and Iruka-Sensei told me about her."

Tsukiko glanced away, her face reddening. ' _Oh dear. I guess he caught a glimpse of me once or twice.'_ She usually dropped food off on Wednesday, unless she was out on a mission. In that case, she gave it to Iruka to give to Naruto. She had no idea he thought a fairy visited him, or that Iruka had planted such a weird story.

Kakashi glanced at her knowingly. "Come on then, let's go."

Team Seven waved their goodbyes and walked away.

Tsukiko addressed her team swiftly, keeping an eye on Masuko. The "Ramen Fairy" bit had given her ample time to calm down, but... "Why don't you two go save us seats and order something, and Masuko and I will be there soon."

"Okay," Midori answered, allowing Chiyo to drag her off.

Once they were out of sight, Tsukiko turned away from the purple-haired woman and focused her chakra. "Shadow Clone Jutsu."

Her clone immediately took off, hurrying to place the food at Naruto's door before he returned.

"So it's you," Masuko guessed dully, leaning against a tree. "You're the Ramen Fairy."

"I suppose so," Tsukiko said, shrugging. "Naruto is a good kid, no matter what anyone says. He's hated for simply existing, and I can relate. So, I help him out."

"Yeah, I overheard a couple of the other ninja. He's the Nine-Tailed Jinchuuriki?" Masuko wouldn't meet her eye and seemed to be doing everything to stay away from their inevitable conversation.

Tsukiko nodded, willing to indulge her. "People are stupid," she muttered. "I remember the night the Fox attacked. It was absolutely terrifying. To know that that kid can keep that thing locked away...well, he's a hero in my book."

Masuko hummed in agreement, and a tense silence stretched on for several long moments.

Tsukiko hesitated, but knew she had to see if the older woman was alright. She had come to respect her in the last few months, and while they weren't exactly friends, she was worried about her in more than just a professional sense. "Masuko...Are you alright? You seemed pretty upset before, about Zabuza's death."

Masuko's smile dropped for a moment, her mask falling away to reveal the sorrow underneath. "It's fine," she said lightly, turning away. "Zabuza was a year older than me, and a real terror. We weren't really close, but...I did consider him a friend."

Tsukiko nodded sympathetically, able to understand her pain. Friends were hard won and easily lost in this world of theirs. "Was he the reason your village…?"

She laughed bitterly. "No. Like I said, we weren't really close. Coincidentally enough, there was another of the Seven Swordsmen who abandoned the Mist. He and I...we grew up together, and I'm not ashamed to admit that I cared about him. I don't know that he ever saw me as more than a childhood friend at best and a sparring partner at worst, because he didn't even say goodbye. He was just...gone one day." Her voice grew quieter, sadder, and she slid down the tree to the ground, covering her face in a rare moment of weakness.

"After he left, Zabuza and I became friends until he abandoned the village as well. Then, the village elders decided that I must have influenced their precious Swordsmen to turn evil and wanted me out of the picture. They planned a mission for me that I wouldn't return from, and a year or so later, I was betrayed."

"I'm sorry," Tsukiko said, her head low as her emotions boiled up inside her. She understood all too well what Masuko was feeling. "My village sold me to the Mist during the war, but a Rain ninja intercepted the notes they sent and came for me. He killed my parents."

Masuko shook her head, her voice bitter. "This world of ours is rotting." She raised her eyes to reveal a dark misery that Tsukiko had only ever seen reflected in her mirror.

Throat tightening with emotion, the younger ninja sat next to Masuko. "I want to find a way to end this cycle of hate and death," she admitted quietly. "But every time I think I have the answer, life throws me another punch." Itachi's face flashed in her mind, and she gripped her knees tightly.

When Masuko next spoke, her voice was small and timid, barely a whisper. "The worst part is that it's our emotions that drive these fights. The very thing that make us human is our greatest strength and greatest weakness...and it hurts so much." Her voice became a muffled sob. "It hurts to love someone you should hate, to be forced to fight them and realize they're not who you thought they were. But you can't stop loving them."

Tsukiko felt her memories threatening to overwhelm her, and she bit her lip hard to keep herself grounded where Masuko was not. "I know how you feel," she replied, speaking without thinking about spies or what she should and shouldn't say to someone she hardly knew. "I'm in love with a guy who killed nearly everyone in his clan before fleeing the village."

The admonition, that she still loved Itachi, was physically painful. She tried her best to avoid thinking about him, but his presence was like a shadow over her life, haunting her. And yet, until that exact moment, she hadn't admitted it to anyone, not even herself, that those feelings were still very much alive.

Masuko shook her head with a short and bitter laugh, punching the ground in frustration. "We really know how to pick 'em, don't we?" Her anger and heartbreak was palpable, as was her confusion. "One of my oldest friends is dead, the only guy I ever loved is a traitor and a murderer, and all I can think about is how much I'd like to spar with them one last time. One last time…"

Tsukiko closed her eyes tightly, not wanting to let her tears escape. If anyone caught her crying over Itachi, it would give Danzo yet another reason to have her watched. But it was hard, especially being with Masuko. The older woman seemed to know exactly what she was thinking.

"One last time," she echoed, a muted whisper in place of sobs and screams of how it wasn't fair that he was free of her and she was trapped by his memory.

The two women stayed there, tucked under a tree outside Konoha, for several more minutes, gathering themselves. When the tears and agony had relented, they each saw the other in a new light, with new understanding. They were veterans of the worst life could throw, and they were still standing, stronger than before.

"Let's go get some food," Masuko said finally, taking a deep breath as she stood. "The girls are waiting for us."

Tsukiko nodded, glancing up as her clone returned. After undoing the jutsu, she knew her plan had gone off without a hitch. Naruto was fed, and the Ramen Fairy had got away.

She sighed heavily as memories of that not-so-distant night swirled back. It had truly been a terrifying experience, but she'd had Itachi...back at a time when he was her strength instead of her weakness.

THEN:

She looked up at the moon.

 _'Just us and Sasuke.'_

Mikoto and Fugaku had gone out, leaving Sasuke in her and Itachi's care. Unable to sleep, they had decided to sit on the veranda, the light of the moon washing over the Uchiha compound. Sasuke was tucked into Itachi's arms, cooing contentedly.

Tsukiko sighed, leaning her head on Itachi's shoulder. The moonlight was dazzling that night. The full moon, shining so radiantly that it nearly erased the light of the surrounding stars, seemed like it would fall from the sky.

Her nightmares were less and less frequent, but she and Itachi had picked up the habit of stargazing most nights, enjoying the peaceful quiet night entailed. No matter what troubles the day brought, night was always serene. The Amaya clan had an affinity for nighttime, their name literally meaning "night rain." Adding Tsukiko's "child of the moon" to that and it seemed destined to be.

A gentle breeze softly stroked her cheeks, and she breathed the night air in. Flowers, trees, and...

"Ugh!" She exclaimed, jerking her head off Itachi.

There was an awful smell hanging in the air, causing her to cover her nose and Itachi to furrow his brow. Sasuke began to fret in his arms, perhaps sensing the change in his company, or perhaps because of the keen sensitivity of a baby noticing something out of the ordinary.

Itachi stared at the moon in the sky. "What is this feeling…?"

"I don't know," Tsukiko replied, shuddering at the evil aura that slowly began to seep into her body. It felt like chakra, but it was so fueled with rage and hatred that it felt nearly painful.

Sasuke began to cry.

"There, there." Even as Itachi rocked the baby soothingly, his eyes stayed focused on the moon, like a seer trying to read the future..

The wind blew once more, smelling like a wild animal. Tsukiko shook her head to try to clear her nose. "It's smells like a fox den," she complained. Her father had found one once and brought her to see the fox cubs. They had been adorable, but the smell had been tough to handle.

"I don't like this feeling," Itachi muttered. "Why are Mom and Dad always out at times like this…?"

Sasuke began to cry even harder. Now was not the time to worry about unpleasant smells. Tsukiko leaned her head on Itachi's shoulder again and let Sasuke hold onto her finger. "It's okay," She said softly. "Big brother and sister are here."

Itachi looked down at his adorable baby brother, a smile creeping across his face. "Don't cry, Sasuke. We'll protect you, no matter what."

Sasuke's cry changed from a scared wail into something sweeter. It was still almost as powerful, the faintest of differences in the strength behind the wail. Rather, the change was more in the baby's mindset, because he knew he was safe.

Itachi allowed his glance to slide over to Tsukiko. She was leaning into him, her warmth comforting as she smiled at Sasuke, but her eyes shone with a fear he understood.

 _'Something's coming.'_

He felt it too. An instinct to run and hide, only overshadowed by the instinct to protect. Itachi held Sasuke with one arm, using the other to wrap around Tsukiko. Whether it was to comfort him or her, he was unsure, but the look of gratitude she shot him filled him with confidence. He would protect them, both of them, no matter what.

Tsukiko's gasp startled him, and made him look up.

He froze, unable to believe his eyes. There was an enormous creature in the distance, visible by the light of the moon. A sinister-looking fox, its burnt orange color blazing in the moonlight, roared in anger. Nine massive tails whipped around it, destroying buildings and homes alike. Ninja, resembling ants in comparison, leapt at the beast, attacks futile.

Itachi pulled Tsukiko to her feet. "We need to stay here in case Mom or Dad returns, but we should be ready to run!" He tightened his grip on Sasuke.

Her fear-filled eyes met his and determination took hold. "Right." Her eyes began to swirl, switching colors rapidly before ending on green. Earth.

The familiar pang of envy at her gift didn't come this time. All he felt was relief that she was in control of herself enough to activate the Gensogan. His own chakra hummed in his veins, demanding to be used.

"We should get away from the house," Itachi said, eyeing the fox monster. "If that thing hits the roof, we're done for."

Abandoning the relative safety of home, they fled down the road, making sure to stay in sight of the house.

"Debris might fall toward us," Tsukiko said, stepping in front of him. "I'll deflect anything that comes our way," she promised. She took a deep breath, tasting fox and burning wood in the wind as she focused. Below her, she could feel the earth, a solid mass of rock that resisted change. Earth was strong, it's stubborn nature the most difficult for her to control. But adrenaline filled her veins, danger making her stronger. Chakra buzzed around her, and she directed it to her hands, ready to punch anything that came her way.

"Itachi! Tsukiko!" A voice cried, a familiar dark-haired woman running toward them.

"Mom." Itachi's voice was strained.

"Thank god you're safe!" Mikoto wrapped her arms tightly around the two older children.

"We didn't want to worry you if we ran away and you came home, so we waited for you."

"Mm hmm." She nodded, tears spilling down her face.

Two sets of eyes, narrowed with the tension of having to protect each other and Sasuke, relaxed to some degree. But this was fleeting. When Itachi noticed something closing in from behind his mother, those eyes quickly regained their original grimness.

"Mom!" He practically threw Sasuke to his mother. And then he flew.

A boulder tossed into the air by the Nine-Tailed Fox shattered near their house, and the pieces danced fatally above their heads. One chunk was falling toward his mother's back.

Tsukiko sensed the boulder just as Itachi leapt into the air. Their training took over, and she reacted just as quickly. Itachi was attacking, so she would defend.

Chakra making her green eyes glow, Tsukiko fell to her knees and grabbed the dirt. It offered no resistance to her now, tamed by her adrenaline-fueled desperation. She looked back at Mikoto, ensuring they hadn't moved.

Mikoto was clutching her baby to her chest, her surprised eyes fixed on Tsukiko and Itachi, still airborne. There was a question there, wondering what had happened to make her son leap into the air, and her adopted daughter fall to the ground.

Tsukiko's hands sank into the ground like clay, the earth ready to obey her. With a mighty pull, two large sheets of rock sprang out of the ground, tilting to form a tent-like structure over Mikoto and Sasuke.

Relieved, the young girl turned her eyes to Itachi.

The rock was enormous, large enough to easily crush a mother and her three children.

"I'll protect you," he murmured. He clenched his fist tightly, chakra glowing.

The physical arts of a shinobi were not about strength. He might have been a small child of five years, body as yet undeveloped, but as long as he managed to knead his chakra properly, he could smash even this enormous rock.

He brandished his fist high in the air. Chakra filled his arm, covering it with faint blue flames.

The rock slammed into Itachi's fist, and exploded with a shriek.

In this world of shinobi, even a child could lift hundreds of pounds of rock, or destroy boulders, as long as they simply kept up with their ninja training.

Showered in a rain of pebbles, he landed soundlessly on the ground, next to a smiling Tsukiko.

"Are you alright?" He asked turning to his mother. His eyes brightened at the rock structure, and he turned an impressed gaze to Tsukiko. "Good job."

Tsukiko glowed with pride. "You too!"

Unable to conceal her surprise, Mikoto stared at her children with saucer-like eyes. She was a jounin, which was precisely why she was amazed at their instantaneous action. Her son had destroyed a boulder several times his size, and her adoptive daughter had protected her with the Gensogan, her eyes glowing green even now.

"It's dangerous here," Itachi said gently, concern for his mother and little brother evident. "Let's get to where everyone else is."

"Right…" As pulled to her senses by his voice, she stood, and Tsukiko raced over to take her hand. Itachi took Tsukiko's and began to pull the odd train along. "You haven't even started at the academy, but you can already do something like that. You really are your father's son, hmm? And Tsuki, you definitely are very strong."

She was no doubt praising them, but this wasn't the time for that. A sense of duty filled Itachi's heart—he had to get his family to a safe place. All around him, he could hear the shrieks of girls and the shouts of boys, mixed with the roar of destruction; it was overwhelming. He gripped Tsukiko's hand tighter, trusting her to hang on to his family.

Images flashed past him, searing themselves into his mind. People running around trying to escape, bleeding. A man who had lost his arm, yelling at a fellow ninja. A young woman staring blankly at a mountain of rubble, like a marionette with the strings cut. A child wailing loudly, trying to rouse a now-cold mother.

In the core of his brain, Itachi heard an ear-splitting screeching. They hadn't actually run that far, and yet he was having trouble breathing. Overlaid on the scene before his eyes was the battlefield he had seen when he was four, the battlefield his father took him to to show him the truth of the world. The place where he had decided to become the strongest ninja.

 _'War…'_

A dull pain raced deep into his eyes. Just like the moment he had stepped onto the battlefield, waves of power coursed behind his onyx orbs. He felt like the world was dyed crimson for a moment, but the sensation quickly subsided.

Behind him, Tsukiko felt like she was being choked. Cold dread stole her breath, leaving her struggling for air. Blood and bodies were everywhere, and the air was filled with a never-ending scream. Flashes of her mother's body, the empty village, blood on the Rain ninja's clothes, flickered across her brain. Her grip on Itachi tightened, needing to know he was there. He looked back at her, panic and fear echoing her own. There would be no one to save them but each other, and if they faltered, they would break their promise to protect Sasuke.

Tsukiko gasped shudderingly, her legs seemingly heavier than usual. Her heart and head pounded in sync, the waves of power behind her eyes switching rapidly. To anyone looking, it was a frightening sight, her eyes flashing in different colors, never staying on one for more than half a second.

"Is something wrong?" Mikoto called from behind Tsukiko, having noticed something strange going on with her children.

"We're alright, Mom." Itachi's answer was thrown back quickly, like a lifeboat on a sinking ship.

They ran desperately, trying to escape the massive violence of the Nine Tails. From the bottom of their hearts, the two young ninjas prayed for the strength to stop war. Their desire in that moment was one and the same.

They wanted to be strong ninja.

 **A.N. Aaaaand that's a wrap! Hopefully I'll be back on schedule now. I wanted to get a chapter out every week, but as I use direct dialogue and descriptions from the Itachi books, and Naruto show, it takes a LONG time to get a chapter out. So it'll be more like every two weeks.**

 **Side Note: If any of you read Through The Eyes Of Hope, that is going to be delayed for a bit. My Vita was destroyed by my puppy, and I have to get a new one...**

 **Please rate and review!**


	7. Chapter 6

A.N. New chapter! Sorry for the delay, but I have finals and am finding less and less time to write. But, I was encouraged by Raskreta's review, which means I'm a sucker for attention. So, please review and I'll try to get the next one out sometime in the next two weeks. We're getting into the Chunin Exams, my favorite part of the original series!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Naruto Shippuden, or the Itachi books. If I did, every damn person in the Leaf would know exactly what Itachi did to save them!

* * *

Then:

Tsukiko once again had to find a new home. Their house, (and many in the same area) had been completely destroyed in the Nine Tails attack, and a new one was built further away. In fact, it was decided that the entire clan would live within a compound, a smaller village of sorts, versus the collection of houses spread all over Konoha.

They were now on the outskirts of the village, a fair distance from the center district where their first home had been, but the Nakano Shrine, where the clan originated, was within the new compound. Tsukiko was informed by Itachi that this one of the few factors that seemed to appease the clan. Before, the shrine had been outside the Uchiha neighborhood, which was very inconvenient as it held Uchiha clan secrets and had to be guarded constantly. Now there was no worry about thieves sneaking in.

Best of all, to Tsukiko anyway, was that since they were on the edge of the village, there was green all around them. Finding places to train was incredibly easy, and with just a short walk, she could cross the border of the village and see the rugged hills rolling across the landscape. It was a beautiful view, especially at night, and reminded her of her old village.

Perhaps a little too much.

Though she was still quite young, Tsukiko knew very well what it meant to be excluded from normal village activities. Before, the Uchiha clan had been fairly spread out, which was advantageous, as it meant police force could respond to any situation anywhere. But ever since it was decided that instead of scattered, the members of the clan would be brought together and a new, mandatory compound built, a stream of young ninja had been coming and going from Fugaku's office, and police protection had dwindled significantly.

 _Discrimination._

 _Persecution._

 _False accusations._

She and Itachi heard only reactionary words from his father's room. And he too was well aware of the reason the adults didn't think this move was a happy one.

From the bits of conversation they'd overheard, they pieced together that the Nine Tails, a creature whose rampage was only stopped with the death of the Fourth Hokage and his wife, could only be controlled by an Uchiha's Sharingan. Due to this, one of their clan was suspected to be the perpetrator, and as a result, they had been pushed as a group to the edge of the village. And not permitted even a word to try to clear themselves.

Tsukiko wasn't surprised that the Uchihas were outraged. She would be too. But Itachi felt differently.

"Once something is decided," he said, throwing stones for her to deflect with her Earth ability. "That should be the end of it. Otherwise, fighting starts."

The two children were in their newfound training spot, a clearing quite a bit bigger than their previous one, framed by thick trees that held further obstacles in the form of cliffs, rivers, and dangerous animals. Currently, Itachi was circling her, small stones leaving his hands at random times to assault Tsukiko.

She had managed to force most of the stones to change direction, but still received several bruises. Itachi was quick to see blind spots and made full use of them, forcing her to adapt or be hit.

It was hard enough to actually use the Earth element, but to detect pieces of earth in the air? Nevertheless, Tsukiko was determined to master it. She had a range of about fifteen feet in any direction. Once a stone entered her invisible bubble, she could sense it. Deflecting it was the problem. She had to negate whatever force Itachi had used to throw the stone, and force it back at him. Easier said than done. Too much and she'd send it off course. Too little and she'd be hit.

Each of the stones, once moving, wanted to stay moving. She could use Wind to send them back, but had little control over direction. By actually taking control of the stone itself, she could send them wherever she wanted. At most, she could control three small stones at a time, and was working towards a fourth.

"That makes sense," She panted, waiting for his next throw. "The healthier choice is to think about how to make the compound better. I really like it here."

"The village is a disaster after the Nine Tails attack," Itachi agreed, moving silently around the clearing. "Many people lost loved ones, and even more lost their homes. Shouldn't the clan consider themselves lucky, given that that the compound was built for them before measures were taken for any of the other people in need?" Quickly, four stones shot out of his hand, coming at her in different directions.

"I think we're very lucky." The instant the stones entered Tsukiko's range, she focused on them. One aimed for her head, one for her body, and two for her legs. She forced her will over the stubborn element, demanding that they shoot back at Itachi, who stood still, waiting to deflect returning fire.

One.

Two.

Three.

F-

"Ouch!" She cried, holding her head. The fourth one had been under her control long enough for her to direct it away from her leg, but had shot up toward her forehead, connecting soundly.

"Are you alright?" Instantly, Itachi was at her side.

"Yeah," Tsukiko responded, wincing. Her hand came away bloody. "Wow! I really whacked myself hard!"

Itachi gently touched her forehead, his hand warm against her skin. "It's already slowing," he noted, frowning with concern. "But you should take a break."

"Thanks," she sighed. "That last one got away from me." She felt her cheeks getting warm, but couldn't understand why it was hard to meet her friend's gaze.

"You need to be more careful," Itachi ordered, becoming bossy. "I can't have an injured teammate."

"Yes sir!" Tsukiko saluted, using the movement as an excuse to pull away.

"A headband would fix that problem!" Shisui's familiar form dropped from a tree, grinning broadly. "You can throw as many stones as you want at it."

"Shisui!" Tsukiko exclaimed, delighted.

The older ninja gestured to them. "Come on, I want to show you two something."

"Wow!" Tsukiko breathed. "What an amazing view!"

The three were sitting on a cliff Shisui discovered outside the village, with Itachi in the middle, Tsukiko on his left, and Shisui on his right. In the distance, they had a perfect view of the Hokage monument, its four expertly carved faces watching over Konoha. Below the cliff rising up perpendicular to the ground, there was a river that meandered along from behind the Hokage monument and flowed out of the village. By the time it reached the cliff, the water flowed much faster and deeper.

Tsukiko felt a rush of pride for the beauty of the monument and the collection of buildings beneath it. Konoha really is beautiful.

Itachi nodded. "How did you find this place?"

Shisui shrugged. "I was looking for a place to cool my head, and just sort of wandered across it. Things have been crazy at the compound lately, not that I have to tell you guys."

"What exactly are the grown-ups doing so late at night?" Itachi asked curiously.

Shisui stared off at the Hokage Monument, a loose smile curling up the corners of his mouth. "I'm a genin," he began, turning toward the quietly listening children. "So I go to the adults' meetings."

"Huh?" Tsukiko asked, more confused. Shisui was most definitely not an adult.

"They meet regularly at Nakano Shrine."

Tsukiko wanted to ask what exactly Shisui was talking about, but an odd fear held her words in her throat.

Shisui looked down. "It's something you don't have to know about yet."

Uneasy, Itachi stared at his friend as he averted his eyes. "

'A heavy air's hanging over the clan…'

'Let me be wrong,' Itachi murmured over and over in his heart.

* * *

Now:

Tsukiko found herself, along with almost every other jounin in the village, summoned before the Hokage in his large office. A few days had passed since Sasuke's dangerous mission, with Tsukiko fretting over him.

He complained a lot, but she knew he secretly enjoyed all her attention, especially since she treated him like a hero instead of a hurt genin, going out of her way to praise his actions as bravery. She even showed him a couple of new kunai moves and ways to dodge multiple projectiles. By the time she was called to meet with the Hokage, Tsukiko had ensured that he was perfectly healthy, and in a far better mood than usual.

"I have summoned you all for a very important purpose," the Third Hokage said, his voice far more formal and serious than usual. "Seeing your fellow jounin here, I'm sure you realize what this is about."

As it was Tsukiko's first time as a sensei, it took her a moment to catch his meaning. 'The Chunin Exams?! So soon? That's...unusual.' The exams were usually held twice a year, rotated through the various lands. She knew that it was Konoha's turn, but it hadn't been a full half-year since the last exam, making this one early.

Asuma Sarutobi, the son of the Third Hokage, spoke up. "I take it the other Lands have been informed of the coming event?" He was a handsome man with dark brown eyes and sideburns that followed the line of his jaw to end in a goatee. And, like father, like son, for he almost always had a cigarette in his mouth. "I noticed some of their genin have already arrived here in the village."

Tsukiko flushed slightly. She'd been so caught up with Sasuke and her own team, she hadn't noticed at all. It was very unlike her.

Next to her, Kurenai Yuhi, a gorgeous woman with long black hair and red eyes currently trained on their leader, also spoke. "And? When do we start?"

"We will begin in one week."

Tsukiko was pleased to notice that nearly everyone in the room was startled at the announcement.

"That's pretty short notice," Kakashi observed.

Tsukiko nodded in agreement. Normally, they would've been notified around a month in advance, especially since their village was the one hosting. She narrowed her eyes. 'Something's not right…'

Releasing a puff of smoke, the Hokage met their surprise with an even gaze, giving nothing away. "Take heed. Exactly seven days from today, on the first day of July, the genin will be gathered and tested. Only the very best will be selected as chunin."

He let his words sink in, giving a chance for all the jounin to carefully assess their teams.

Tsukiko bit her lip. It was far sooner than she would've liked, but she was already considering her squad, and this was a perfect chance for them to test their skills. They made an excellent team, even with just two of them, and they had done incredibly well on this last mission.

She nodded to herself. They were ready.

"Alright. It is time we chose our candidates for the Chunin Examinations. To begin, will those in charge of the rookie genin, step forward."

Tsukiko moved closer to the Hokage, in-step with her fellow senseis as the old man greeted them formally, his voice booming.

"Kakashi, Tsukiko, Kurenai, and Asuma. What do you say? Are there any in your squads you'd recommend, who are ready for the exams despite their inexperience? As you know, any genin who has carried out eight or more missions is technically eligible for the examinations. Beyond that, only you can decide when they are ready."

Tsukiko's lips quirked. Her team had more than double that amount of successful missions, and she knew that each of the teams belonging to the jounin beside her were around the same. Sasuke had complained about cat-rescuing missions at least fifteen times.

The Hokage continued. "Of course, most genin require a much longer training period, at least twice that many missions. So, Kakashi, you begin."

Kakashi held up two fingers close to his face, the rest of his hand curled into a fist. Similar to a Shadow Clone handsign, it was a respectful and formal gesture. "I lead Squad Seven," he said formally, speaking loudly and clearly. "Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno. I, Kakashi Hatake, recommend all three of these genin for the Chunin Selection Exams."

Pride swelled in Tsukiko's chest as she mimicked Kakashi's hand sign and tone of voice. "I lead Squad Eleven," she announced, the familiar happiness selling up as she thought about her team. "Chiyo Mitsuru, Midori Hisoka. I, Tsukiko Amaya, recommend both of these genin for the Chunin Selection Exams."

There was some surprised murmurs from behind her, and Tsukiko felt her cheeks darken. Normally, two genin were not enough, and wouldn't be accepted without a third unless there was a special reason.

"A team of two genin will be acceptable this year, given the circumstances," the Hokage announced as if echoing her thoughts, his tone final.

Tsukiko sent the old man a grateful look as the other two jounin continued.

"And my squad is number Eight," Kurenai said. "Hinata Hyuga, Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame. And now I, Kurenai Yuhi, recommend all three."

"And my squad is number Ten. Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara, Choji Akimichi. And now I, Asuma Sarutobi, recommend all three."

The office exploded into whispers and mutters from the other jounin. It was _beyond_ unusual for one team of rookie genin to be recommended, even odder for a team of two. But for all four of the genin teams to be selected, it was madness. Still, the Hokage nodded in acknowledgment.

"Hold on, just a minute!" A voice demanded.

"Yes, what is it, Iruka?" The old man asked.

Tsukiko turned and was unsurprised to meet the angry and concerned face of Sasuke's Academy teacher, Iruka Umino.

He was a man of average height and build, with brown hair in a high ponytail and a distinct scar across his nose. Iruka was a polite, well-respected chunin who was recognized as an excellent teacher, despite his relatively young age of twenty-two. Tsukiko liked him well enough, having had several conferences to discuss Sasuke's remarkable talents, but she couldn't say she knew him well.

"Lord Hokage, with all respect," he said, his voice tight with anger. "The eleven names that were just given, were all my students at the Academy. I know their skills and abilities. Every one of them has great promise, but it's too soon! They need more experience before they are tested. If they try now, they're sure to fail the exam! Especially if there is to be a team of two!"

Warmth and hurt battled for dominance in Tsukiko's mind as she regarded the concerned man. Yes, it was obvious he cared about his students, which said a lot about his character, but so did she. She was their teacher now, not him. It had been several months since they were Academy students.

"When I became a chunin, I was six years younger than Naruto is now. And Tsukiko became a chunin on a two-man squad when she was two years younger than them."

"Naruto is nothing like you and Tsukiko!" He declared hotly. "And besides, Tsukiko was with—"

Before he could finish, Tsukiko was in front of him, fire dancing gracefully in her hand. "Watch yourself, Iruka," she warned, her expression dangerous. "It doesn't matter who I was teamed with, because I earned my rank _on my own_. Which is exactly how Chiyo and Midori will become chunin. Based on their own skills and merits."

"Tsukiko," Kurenai said softly, making the younger woman step back, her fire extinguished.

"Are you trying to destroy them?!" Iruka asked, unnerved but not backing down.

"Well, they're always complaining about not being challenged enough," Kakashi said calmly. "Maybe wiping out on the exams will teach them a lesson. A little pain is good."

Tsukiko agreed. If they were to be ninjas, they had to be pushed to their limits. Not that she wanted them to be hurt. She just had faith in them, unlike Iruka.

"Wh-What did you say?!"

"Oh, nothing fatal, of course," Kakashi continued, his voice calm but his words showing that Iruka was annoying him. "But seriously, Iruka. _Relax_."

The teacher spluttered angrily.

"Listen," Kakashi said placatingly. "I understand how you feel. It's very personal for you, and it upsets you, but—"

"Alright Kakashi," Kurenai ordered, not wanting him to finish that damning sentence they were all thinking. "Back off. You've said enough."

"On the contrary, Kurenai," Kakashi disagreed. "Iruka needs to hear this. He needs to realize that they're not his students anymore. They're mine."

Kurenai sighed as Iruka growled angrily.

Tsukiko felt sorry for the man, but was far more annoyed. How _dare_ he not trust them to want the same thing for these kids? They weren't _trying_ to hurt them!

"But these exams could destroy them, you know that!"

"Iruka!" The Third Hokage's voice offered no room for argument. "You have made your point. I understand."

The teacher hesitated, then bowed his head respectfully. "Lord Hokage."

"Accordingly," the old man continued. "I have decided that the best thing to do would be to hold a special preliminary test."

Tsukiko tilted her head curiously. 'A preliminary test? My girls will be fine.'

"Iruka will run this test, seeing as he is the most concerned. Until the results of this test come in, everyone is dismissed. We will speak further about the other candidates at that later time."

Immediately, Might Guy, an incredibly strong and energized man with a black bowl cut, large nose, and enormous eyebrows, latched on to Kakashi and began badgering him. Those two had a strange rivalry of sorts, and it certainly kept things interesting.

"Tsukiko, one moment."

The young kunoichi paused, the voice of the Hokage making her turn back. "Sir?"

The remaining few ninja shot her sympathetic or satisfied looks as they passed. It didn't bode well to be called out like this. And soon enough, the only ones in the office were the Hokage, Tsukiko, and his two normal Anbu guards.

"Tsukiko, I'd like to hear a progress report on your team, particularly on Masuko Arashi."

Confused, as she had literally _just_ put in a report on their latest mission a few hours ago, the young woman nodded and began immediately listing the strengths and weaknesses of the team.

Chihiro was powerful, and clever against her opponents, but she was headstrong and cocky. She rushes in without thinking, fists flying.

Midori was a natural leader, and tried to direct Chiyo's strengths where it would strategically give them an advantage. She was however, unsure of herself. She looked to Tsukiko or Masuko for reassurance or praise of an idea, second-guessing herself. Her medical ninjutsu was coming along, but wouldn't further unless she gained confidence.

That was the reason Tsukiko wanted them in the exams. Chiyo would be challenged and pushed to her limits, and Midori would be forced into a situation where she couldn't look to authority figures. She would have to lead on her own.

"And Masuko?"

Tsukiko smiled. "I couldn't have asked for a more enthusiastic sensei. She and Chiyo are very close now, and Masuko has gone out of her way to give her extra training. I trust her, sir. On every mission, she's done nothing suspicious and nothing that ever made me question her motives. On the contrary, she's protected the girls several times where it would have been easy to allow them to get hurt with no consequences to herself."

The Third Hokage smiled warmly. "Good. One final question. Would you trust her to lead your squad?"

The gentle query shocked her. Lead her squad? Masuko? Was she herself not adequate?

"Don't misunderstand, Tsukiko," he said calmly, correctly interpreting her expression. "You've done a fine job. I have an assignment for you that will take you away from the team for a short while. I just need to know if you can trust Masuko to lead the team in the meantime."

Relief swept through the young woman, and she nodded. "Yes, I would definitely trust her. She loves those kids."

Steeping his fingers together, the Hokage regarded her for a long moment. "Very well. Now, your assignment. As I'm sure you've noticed, this event has been kept very secret."

Tsukiko frowned, listening intently. "Yes, Lord Third," she answered.

"That is because there are some unusual circumstances. For one, the Kazekage will be in attendance for the third exam."

Her brow furrowed further. 'That's not unusual at all,' she thought. 'Other Kages often come to see the exams, especially if they're close to each other.' And Sunagakure, the Village Hidden in the Sand, was only roughly three days away from the Leaf.

"And he is bringing a rather large guard with him, to compliment the usually large number of candidates put forth this year."

Understanding sparked in her mind, and she let out a small sigh. "And from our own allies, too."

The Third Hokage smiled slightly. "At this point, there is no other evidence to show a planned attack. The Kazekage has been very thorough with explaining the inconsistencies, and I am satisfied with his reasoning. It would be foolish, however, to not take precautions. As such, Tsukiko, I would like you to be my personal proctor for the examinations."

Her eyes widened slightly. "Sir? I don't understand."

"I want someone overseeing all three exams and reporting to me directly," he explained, lighting his pipe. "You would be a spectator, nothing more. A fake proctor, you could call it, merely there to ensure the safety of the genin."

"But why me?" She asked, cocking her head. "Surely there are several other jounin more qualified?" It was unlike her to question orders, as she knew very well that qualified or not, she was stronger than most of the other jounin. Still, the Hokage choosing her personally was...humbling.

The old man chuckled, pointing the tip of his pipe at her. "Well, Tsukiko. I chose you because you have a unique situation. You see, a proctor cannot be one of the jounin with genin in the exams, for obvious reasons. However, if we say that Masuko is actually the one in charge of your team, then no one would be able to object to your presence, especially since you will not actually be judging. But, because you do have a connection to genin on various teams, I can trust that you will do everything in your power to protect them."

"I see!" Tsukiko smiled, impressed with the crafty nature of the Hokage. "That makes sense. Very well. I'll have Masuko give Chiyo and Midori their applications, with instructions to act like they don't know me very well. But what about the other Leaf genin?"

"I'll have them be instructed to ignore you," the Hokage responded, leaning back in his chair. "They'll know that you are not grading, so there should be no problem. I would say disguise yourself, but I would rather the foreign ninja know that our Gensogan user is keeping an eye on things. They will have to be more cautious with their movement, and stand a higher chance of slipping up somewhere."

Tsukiko bowed her head respectfully. "Very well, Lord Third. I accept."

He smiled. "Good. Meet Ibiki and Anko to discuss the first two exams. If nothing has happened after that, we likely have nothing to worry about. But the children of the Leaf are our future, and I will take no chances."

Knowing that she was being dismissed, Tsukiko bowed once more before leaving the office, excitement and pride warring with determination and wariness. She would have to watch everything and everyone very closely, but...she would get to see Sasuke in action!

'Besides,' she thought, leaping from building to building. 'Even if the Sand attacks, I doubt any genin will be targeted specifically. If anything, being in the exam should keep them away from the brunt of the fighting.'

* * *

Then:

Six years old.

Itachi and Tsukiko finally started at the academy.

It wasn't as if he was particularly overjoyed about school itself, though Tsukiko certainly seemed to be. It was that school held for him a concrete sense of achievement, the feeling that he was getting closer to the long-awaited goal of being a ninja. School would be completely different from the way he trained in secret with Tsukiko or Shisui. The days at school were the path to ninjahood. And that made him indescribably happy.

"Now then, please introduce yourself and tell everyone your dream for the future," the older male teacher said, looking out at his students. He had a forgettable face and nondescript clothing, with short blond hair and squinting blue eyes.

Their first class. The slightly nervous students looked at each other, confused. Itachi watched as the others chatted-"Hey, what're we doing now?"-still unfamiliar with one another. And then he thought, as if he were not a part of the situation himself, that it was no wonder they were confused.

They couldn't just get up in front of all these unknown people and spill out their dreams.

Itachi was seated next to Tsukiko, who was looking around with excitement at the bare walls and long tables that served as their seats. She had always been more confident than him when it came to making friends, which didn't bother him before…So why was he so irritated that she was already trying to get to know the people around them? Tsukiko had politely introduced herself to the girl next to her, and was chatting away in no time. Of course, as soon as the teacher had entered, she'd given him her full attention, but still.

'She has me and Shisui. How many friends does she need? It's not as if these...kids can teach her anything.'

"All right then, maybe we'll go by student number," the teacher said, loudly, rolling over the murmurs from all corners of the room, perhaps understanding how his students felt, perhaps not.

'Uchiha Itachi…'

He was going to have to wait a fair bit before he was called, but wasn't worried about what he would say. He'd had the same dream since he could remember. All he had to do was say it.

"All right, very well done."

The nth classmate was applauded. Her dream was to be a great ninja like her father.

'Be a great ninja like her father…' He imagined his own father. Fugaku _was_ great. But Itachi felt like it wasn't enough for him to be the head of the Military Police Force. Which didn't mean he was rejecting his father; he did want to excel like his father did. But the place Itachi had his eyes set on was beyond that, and he couldn't say that his father was currently standing there.

"Alright, next is Amaya Tsukiko."

He jumped slightly at hearing her last name. He had forgotten that Tsukiko wasn't technically an Uchiha, because she wasn't adopted.

Her face was also surprised, and a little disappointed. He knew she wanted to be a part of his family, but didn't feel like she was good enough. It irritated him that after two years, his father still hadn't recognized her formally as his daughter. Of course she was good enough! Why else would Itachi have chosen her to be his teammate?

Tsukiko's surprise wore off quickly, and she walked to the front of the class, where the teacher waited patiently. Itachi's mother had insisted that she wear an outfit more suited to a kunoichi while at school. So, she was dressed in a dark blue tunic with white designs and black pants, instead of the usual high-collared shirt. It was a striking combination with her white hair, and Itachi felt a strange protectiveness toward her as he watched his classmates take notice of the near hypnotizing sway of her white locks.

"I am...Amaya Tsukiko," she began, her pause almost nonexistent. "My dream is to be stronger than anyone else, and protect the people I love. I also want to protect the dreams of others." Her eyes were locked onto Itachi as she declared her dream, reminding him that he was one such person she wanted to help.

He felt a smile curl his lips, and burst of pride erupted in his chest. Of course she was good enough. She was his partner, after all.

"Well done," the teacher said, patting her head, just as he'd done for all the other students. The sound of bored, automatic clapping filled the air.

Tsukiko looked around, confused. And Itachi could easily guess why.

She had gotten the exact same response as if she had said, "I want to be the cutest ninja ever!" Obviously, the class gave no thought to ambition, no thought about what they said coming true.

Tsukiko returned to her seat, clearly disappointed.

"I know you'll succeed," Itachi told her quietly. "You're strong."

She smiled sadly at him. "Thanks. I just hoped we'd find people like a Shisui here, people who understood."

"It doesn't matter," Itachi insisted. "We have each other."

Tsukiko was silent for a long moment, pondering his words. "You're right. The only one I need is you." She smiled sweetly, not realizing the powerful effect her words had.

A warm feeling filled Itachi, and he couldn't help but return her smile softly. His heart began to beat faster, and for perhaps the first time, he really saw Tsukiko. Not as a teammate or training partner, not as a friend or adopted sister, but as someone precious to him. Someone who he could trust, and rely on. The only person in the world who understood him.

Distracted by his realization, he took no notice of the other people coming and going, his hands automatically clapping. It wasn't until he heard his own name that he was pulled from his mind.

"Uchiha Itachi." The teacher looked at Itachi and smiled.

With the thought that there wasn't much point in a self-introduction if their teacher had said their names first, as he had been doing the whole time, Itachi stood up and walked to the front of the class. The other students, the same age as he was, but with no motivation to speak of, turned interested eyes on him, and he felt a faint itching on his forehead. He heard a girl giggle, whispering to her friends.

"I'm Uchiha Itachi. My dream is…" he faltered.

The teacher and students cocked their heads, almost as if to ask what was wrong. Tsukiko's worried eyes seared him where he stood.

It wasn't as if he didn't have a dream. And it wasn't that he was having trouble choosing the dream he was going to talk about. And naturally, his mouth hadn't stopped working because he was nervous or anything of the sort. He just wasn't sure if he should actually talk about his dream in this place.

The dreams the people before him had shared were all so modest. 'I want to be like my father. I want to be a great ninja and do a lot of missions. I want to be a cute ninja.' This was the sort of dream the teacher and his classmates expected. Tsukiko's dream had been met with confusion. It was too grand, too different.

Itachi's dream was even grander and even more different.

"My dream…"

"It's alright, go ahead and say it," the teacher urged him.

He met Tsukiko's gaze. 'It doesn't matter what they think,' her eyes encouraged. 'I believe in you.'

"I want to be the greatest ninja ever, great enough that I can erase all fighting from this world."

He heard someone laugh in the corner of the classroom, saw Tsukiko's scowl whip toward the noise, before the pre-established harmony of applause.

"Well done," the teacher said, patting his head, as he had done to everyone.

Despite knowing how they would react, it was disappointing all the same.

Apparently it was just too absurd. No one (besides Tsukiko) believed him. They all thought it was a dream that could never come true. A delusional dream, that came from a young child's ignorance of the world. That's what they all thought, so they laughed at him, they clapped mechanically.

Out of all of them, only two of them-only Itachi and Tsukiko-were serious.

And his teacher and classmates would learn just how serious, in the days to come.

Tsukiko was bored. She had thought school would be filled with exciting new ninja moves, not realizing that all of the kids besides her and Itachi were new to training. They had to learn from the beginning. Which meant boring training sessions that she and Itachi had done over a year ago.

Currently, their task was a timed trial, in which students tried to hit the twenty human figures set up all over the school yard in the shortest amount of time possible. Each student was timed individually.

The classmates before her had all run around at top speed, managing to complete the task in just over five minutes, panting all the while.

She scoffed. 'That's ridiculously long, considering we were shown where all the targets were.'

They were in annoyingly obvious places, like the top of the tallest tree, or behind a half open window on the third floor. If she or Itachi had set it up, the figures would be hidden in the middle of the tree, or peeking out of a crack in a cliff. It was almost insulting how easy it was.

Until she'd seen her classmates. Then it all made sense. In retrospect, she should've guessed that she and Itachi were the only ones training constantly at their age. The kids around them had to be instructed how to hold and throw a kunai, something she had known since she was four.

This drill was ridiculously simple, and gave her no challenge. Still, to make it harder, she decided that she wouldn't use her Gensogan. If she didn't, she would hopefully gain something out of the exercise.

The students were lined up, waiting for their named to be called. There were several kids in front of her, so she decided to start planning her route.

Tsukiko and Itachi has developed a formula of sorts, a way of efficiently hitting all the targets in the shortest amount of time possible.

First, she divided the schoolyard into four circles from the starting point. The innermost circle had the ones that she could hit from the start, without having to move. For the others, she divided them further, trying to find the points from which she could hit multiple targets. There were twelve out of the twenty figures that she would have to move to hit, and four spots she would have to move to.

"Amaya Tsukiko." The teacher's bored voice called her name just as she finished.

She stepped forward confidently, hoping Itachi was paying attention. They'd been forced to line up in order, so he was somewhere near the end, no doubt running his own calculations.

Tsukiko pulled eight kunai out of her pouch, four in each hand. Behind her, she heard someone snicker. And rightly so. If she'd been normal for her age, she'd have trouble holding one correctly. Holding eight, she'd be sure to wound herself.

Luckily, she was not normal.

The teacher raised his hand. "Begin!"

Instantly, all eight kunai she'd been holding flashed in different directions, each hitting the figure right between where his eyes would've been.

Less than two seconds.

Tsukiko spun into the air, throwing two more. The figures in the tree and window were now identical to their eight companions in the yard.

Six seconds.

She landed and shot to her next location. Four more figures met their end with deadly accuracy. Never did Tsukiko wait to see if her kunai hit. She knew instinctively if her aim was true, and on such easy targets, there was no question. As soon as she threw, she moved to the next location.

To her classmates, she was a blur. Still for one moment, then gone the instant her kunai flashed.

Thirty-one seconds.

Too long. Itachi could do better, and Shisui would laugh at her slow speed.

"W-Well done," the teacher stammered, oblivious to her anger. "Alright, next up."

Furious with herself, she soundlessly materialized back in line. The students immediately moved away from her, stunned by her amazing performance. They whispered to themselves excitedly, bunched together like a cluster of twittering birds.

"If you had jumped three feet to the left, you would've gotten the tree, window, and the one behind the log." Itachi's voice was calm, the exact opposite of the other students.

"I know," Tsukiko sighed irritably. "As soon as I jumped, I noticed that. Shisui would've done better."

'You would've done better.'

"I would've run the same path," Itachi said, not realizing he was disagreeing with her thoughts. "I only saw the quicker way after you jumped. It's different thinking about it and actually doing it."

"True," Tsukiko sighed, watching the boy after her run around like a chicken. "That makes me feel better about it. Still, these targets are so easy…" Even looking at them now filled her with shame. How did she take so long on such an easy test?

"Is that why you didn't use the Gensogan?" Itachi asked, lips quirking. "Using Wind, you could've made the kunai fly farther, and maybe complete it in twenty seconds."

"That's practically cheating!" Tsukiko protested, bumping his shoulder playfully. "I only do that on the hard ones, like when you put a target in a hawk's nest!"

He shrugged unapologetically, eyes full of humor. "It had the added bonus of simulated combat."

Tsukiko scoffed. "Next time, you can fight off a hawk and talk to me about 'simulated combat!'"

"Deal."

"Uchiha Itachi," the teacher called.

Leaving her side, Itachi took his place at the start, eight kunai ready. Tsukiko watched, ready to spot any other places they could shorten the time.

"Begin!"

He moved just as swiftly as she had, making the correction to his jump. As he moved, Tsukiko admitted that he was right. It was far different watching. In fact, she almost immediately saw where they could leave out one jump entirely. Still his speed was impressive, and Tsukiko grinned, happy that her partner was so skilled.

Thirty seconds.

"W-Wha-? W-Well done," the teacher said disbelievingly, wiping sweat away, as he watched the expressionless boy. "Next…"

The students were now squawking rather than twittering, their noise annoying Tsukiko as she frowned at the course, running a new calculation.

Itachi was scowling as he walked back over to her, reflecting on the results of the trial. "Shisui still would've been faster."

Tsukiko nodded glumly. "Yeah. And I noticed we could cut almost five seconds off if we…"

Itachi listened to her explanation silently, eyes focused on the training course. "You're right," he said softly, ashamed at his immaturity. "We need to get better."

"Definitely. Let's set up a similar course at home. We won't stop until we can do it in under twenty seconds."

"Sounds good."

* * *

A.N. Whoo! Chunin Exams! Yay! I wonder how Tsukiko is going to handle the return of Orochimaru, who scares the crap out of her, and his interest in Sasuke? Hmm…

Side Note: As much as I want to go all out with their characters, Tsukiko's team (aside from Masuko, as she's important to this story) are going to get a lot of off-screen development. I want to eventually write their stories and make this a sort of trilogy that you can read in any order. What do you guys think?

As always, thank you for reading and please review! I love talking to you guys!


	8. Chapter 7

A.N. Whoo! Happy Late Mother's Day! I actually got a chance to sit and write for a couple of hours, and made a ton of progress! I think I'll be able to go back to weekly updates, now that I'm a couple chapters ahead. And, as a special thank you for all the reviews I got, there will actually be two chapters this week, the second being on Friday. After that, updates will be of Fridays from that point on.

Thank you and please review!

Disclaimer: I don't own any part of the Naruto series, and give all praise to Kishimoto for his creation.

* * *

NOW:

The Chunin Exams had finally arrived, and boy was the room packed. Well over a hundred candidates from allied villages spaced all over the Five Lands were present, including the rookie Leaf genin, who had all passed their preliminary test with flying colors.

Tsukiko waited patiently by the door, listening to the muffled chatter of the young ninja. Ibiki intended to make a dramatic entrance of sorts, something to start the psychological assault.

'Poor kids,' she thought with a smile. 'They have no idea what they're getting into.' Ibiki was a master of psychological torture, as they would soon see. And after that...Anko.

She gave a quiet shudder. Anko was a little bloodthirsty for Tsukiko's tastes, but she was nice enough. And strong too. And merciless. She had quite cheerfully told Tsukiko that even with her watchful eye around, there would likely be several deaths once the Forest exam began.

'Of course, anyone trained by _that guy_ is sure to be terrifying…'

"Ready?" A gruff voice said, interrupting her thoughts.

Ibiki Morino towered over her, his scarred face unsmiling. He wore a dark blue bandana with his forehead protector attached, and a grey button-up shirt under a long black coat. Dark blue gloves with knuckle protectors his his hands from view, the metal flashing dangerously. All interrogators dressed in this way, but there was no question Ibiki was the best. Two long scars marred his face, which, added to his height, made him a terrifying person to find glaring at you. The effect was dulled slightly, however, by his eagerness to begin. It was the first time he had been put in charge of this exam.

Tsukiko smiled knowingly. "Yes sir!"

Behind her, she heard shouts and exclamations of surprise. Fighting.

Ibiki's gaze hardened. "Someone's eager." Looking over his shoulder, he shouted. "We move, NOW!" Pulling a few smoke bombs out of his pocket, he threw them out the door.

Tsukiko found herself surrounded by other ninja, most of them from Ibiki's interrogation squad, and they all entered the waiting room swiftly, Ibiki's voice instantly quieting the rowdy genin.

"All right you baby-faced degenerates, pipe down and listen up!"

The smoke cleared, revealing the absurd amount of faces in the room. 'We'll have to weed quite a few out,' Tsukiko thought idly. She glanced over and saw her team, standing in a group with the other rookie Leaf genin.

Ibiki smiled chillingly. "It's time to begin. I am Ibiki Morino, your proctor. And from this moment, your worst enemy."

Stunned silence met his words, most of the genin speechless.

The interrogator pointed out into the crowd, easily picking out the ninja who had been fighting. They were all loosely in a circle, a group of Sound genin standing over an older Leaf genin. Tsukiko was mildly surprised to see he was about her age, clicking her tongue at how someone that old hadn't yet passed. He had grey hair pulled back into a ponytail, a kind face, and glasses. Kakashi's squad, including Sasuke, was standing near him protectively.

"First off," Ibiki boomed. "You candidates from the Village Hidden in the Sound...knock it off! Who told you you could fight?! You want to be failed before we've even begun?!"

One of the genin, a boy seemingly completely wrapped in bandages except for his leg eye, turned. He was hunched over, a large furry thing on his back. "Sorry," he said insincerely, his voice rasping slightly. "It's our first time. Guess we're a little jumpy...sir."

Tsukiko raised an eyebrow. The Sound Village was relatively new, and there wasn't a lot known about their abilities. Still, she had expected them to sound a little more...musical?

Ibiki smirked at the boy's insolence, nodding his head in acknowledgment. "I'll say this once, so listen up!" He said sharply, his eyes fixing them with a piercing glare. "There will be no combat between candidates, no attacking each other without the permission of your proctor! And even then, the use of fatal force is strictly prohibited." He glared at the Sound, his voice deepening. "Anyone who even thinks of messing with me will be disqualified _immediately._ Got it?"

Another Sound genin, a boy with spiky black hair, additional face protection, and a camo scarf, scoffed loudly. "No fatal force? That's no fun."

The ninja, mostly chunin, around Tsukiko chuckled, and she found herself smiling slightly. The kid had guts, that's for sure. Hopefully she wouldn't be seeing them anytime soon.

"Now, If we're ready," Ibiki continued. "We will proceed to the first stage of the Chunin Exams. Hand over your paperwork. In return, you'll each be given a number." He held up a small, white wooden square with the number "1" painted on it. "This number determines where you will sit. We'll start the written test once you are all seated."

Apparently, there were a few who weren't aware of the written test. Naruto looked like he'd been told he could never eat ramen again. Still, there were no problems with the paperwork Tsukiko collected, one of the jobs she could do. When Midori and Chiyo passed, she gave them a sly wink. The written test should be easy enough for them, and if not, well...that was the point.

Once inside, Tsukiko took her seat, near the front of the room, holding a clipboard. She wasn't actually grading, but she wanted to give the appearance of it all the same. While Ibiki explained the rules, heavily implying that they were expected to cheat without getting caught, Tsukiko sized up the genin.

Sasuke appeared confident, as did Midori, who was sitting next to him. Midori was clever enough to work out at least a few of the questions on her own, and Sasuke was probably in the same boat.

Chiyo looked a little nervous, but also incredibly excited. She kept looking around with wide eyes, a contrast to the silent character next to her.

'A Sand genin…' Tsukiko studied him closely. He had a shock of red hair, and an angry face. There were large black circles under his turquoise eyes, making her wonder if the poor kid ever slept, and he carried a large gourd on his back. His aura was deadly, hinting at an impressive chakra.

Chiyo, sweetheart that she was, turned and spoke to him, smiling in a friendly way.

The boy said nothing, listening intently to Ibiki's instructions.

The dark-haired girl shrugged amiably, and returned her eyes to the front, bouncing slightly in her chair.

Tsukiko bit back a smile, turning her attention to the other genin. Several Leaf, a handful from other nations, one team from Sound, a few teams from the Sand, and a mix of other allied villages. Nothing overly worrying on the surface, but still, caution was never amiss. And there were several...odd-looking genin as well. A boy from the Sand with purple lines on his face, a Leaf rookie with a dog on his head ('He must be from the Inuzuka Clan'), and amusingly enough, a young man who looked nearly identical to Guy.

'That must be Lee,' she thought, biting back a smile. 'I heard he even sounds just like Guy, yelling about youth all the time.' Her sharp eyes also picked out the flat lilac eyes of the Hyuga Clan. Two sets. One young man with long black hair, and the other a timid-looking girl with short hair sitting next to Naruto.

'Is that Hinata Hyuga?' She wondered. Hinata was the heir to the Hyuga Clan. Tsukiko remembered her clearly, as her first major mission had come about while the Anbu were busy rescuing her as a small child. 'I wonder how strong she is…' It would be interesting to have two users of the Byakugan, the kekkei genkai of the Hyuga, during this exam. Among other things, it allowed the users to see incredibly far away, and to also see and block the chakra system.

"One more thing," Ibiki announced. "If any candidate should get a zero and fail the test, then the entire team fails."

'Ouch!' Tsukiko winced at the harsh rule. Ibiki was certainly doing things differently than when she took the test, that's for sure. And judging by the glares Sasuke and Sakura were sending Naruto, their team was in big trouble.

As Ibiki wrapped up the rules, explaining that there would be a final tenth question given fifteen minutes before time was up, Tsukiko casually picked up one of the spare tests.

Humming softly to herself, she glanced through the questions. The test was no more difficult than what she remembered, but it was certainly challenging. Still, she herself hadn't needed to cheat, and had finished it fairly quickly. To be fair though, Ibiki wasn't her proctor, and there hadn't been all of these extra rules in place. It had been just a test with an information-gathering twist.

"Begin!"

The sound of papers filled the air momentarily, and then it was quiet.

Tsukiko glanced up from her copy of the test, having completed the easy code-breaking section for fun. If she couldn't grade the genin officially, she could at least watch and see who she could catch cheating. For her own entertainment, she forbid herself from using her Gensogan. If she used Wind, she could read the air patterns in the room, which would likely give away most of them.

It was pretty funny, seeing the faces go from surprise, to confusion, to panic. Chiyo's eyes were popping out of her skull, and Midori was tapping her pencil against the desk, her brow furrowed as she concentrated.

'Come on girls!' Tsukiko encouraged silently. 'Cheat like you mean it.'

Beside Midori, Sasuke put his test down, smiling ruefully. He clearly had no idea what any of it meant. And in front of him, Naruto was holding his head, shaking. Sakura was already filling out her form, obviously the brains of the operation.

Beside her, one of the sentinels marked down a cheater, deducting two of their ten points. Five tries, that's all they had. There was no way for most of them to answer these questions correctly, so they had no choice but to try and cheat without getting caught.

Some of them were quite good. Tsukiko could guess how a few of the Leaf genin were cheating, knowing their family skills, but she hadn't actually caught them yet. The Inuzuka boy was certainly getting answers from his dog, but she couldn't prove it. The Hyuga boy's Byakugan was activated, no doubt looking at someone's paper, but there was no sign of that other than his eyes being activated, which in and of itself, wasn't proof.

Sasuke must've caught on, because his eyes were red with his Sharingan, copying someone.

There were several chunin with answers in the room, and they were easy to spot. They were the ones who were writing slowly and steadily, not hurried or panicked. They wanted the kids to copy them, so they were going out of their way to be slow and confident.

Midori's left hand moved, tapping nonchalantly against the table. Tsukiko grinned, her cheek resting against her fist. It was a code they had developed together as a team, one of their first exercises. While it was good to know the normal nonverbal commands, it was better to have a subtle silent language, perfect for times like this.

Two rows behind her, Chiyo as writing quickly, her eyes flickering between Midori's hands and the paper rapidly. Her head never moved though, so she drew no attention to herself.

As to how Midori had gotten the answers, Tsukiko wasn't sure. Maybe she was smart enough to get them on her own. Her intelligence was quite high, but more strategic than booksmart. Or, so she thought.

'These kids surprise me everyday,' she thought, proud to be their sensei.

A sudden flash of light startled her, and she looked over to see that one of her fellow sentinels had thrown a kunai knife at the rest of a candidate sitting one row behind Naruto.

"Aaaaah!" He screamed, his chair screeching as he pushed himself back. The genin stared at the kunai for a moment, then glared indignantly at the sentinel, standing up. "What the—What was that all about?!"

"Five strikes and you're out," the chunin said smugly. "You just failed the test."

The genin's mouth dropped open. "What? It can't be!"

The sentinel pointed to the poor genin. "You and your teammates will leave the room immediately."

Two other ninja rose silently, disappointment and anger on their faces. All three left the room, the first genin still shaking.

After that, it was like the floodgates had opened. There must've been some time limit in place for the sentinels, where they couldn't dismiss genin, because suddenly, several people had failed. To think that they all got their fifth strike so close to each other was ludicrous.

"Candidate number twenty-three, fail."

"Number twenty-seven and forty-three, fail."

"No! It's not fair!" One boy cried, being forcefully removed from the exam room.

"No! No way!" An older Sand genin shouted, slamming his hand down on the table. "Who says I cheated five times?! Where's your proof?!"

Tsukiko watched him expressionlessly. He didn't make it because he wasn't good enough. That was the truth. He should accept that and use the time he had to train until he _was_ good enough.

One of the sentinels stood up as the boy continued to shout.

"How can you keep track of all of us?! You've got the wrong guy. How do you know I wasn't just—uurgh!"

The boy was slammed into the back wall by the sentinel's arm, then held in place by that same arm.

"Sorry pal," the chunin explained warningly. "We were chosen for this because we don't make mistakes like that. You can't even blink without us seeing it. We're the best of the best, and you my friend, are history." He released him. "Now get out, and take your teammates with you."

The boy slumped to the ground, defeated.

Testing resumed, all of the candidates more frantic and paranoid. Occasionally, a few numbers would be called out, and those teams would leave. So far, Tsukiko counted fifteen teams taken out.

Scanning the room again, she saw Sasuke writing away, a faint smile on his face. Midori had her test flipped over, completed. Not being able to look over her shoulder and see Chiyo, she continued the movement of her fingers, slowly repeating the answers over and over.

As for Chiyo, her pen had stopped writing, and she was glancing curiously over at the red-headed ninja to her right. He was completely calm, unfazed by anything going on. His attention was focused on his hand, two fingers in front of his face. Chiyo's eyes widened slightly as the boy made a fist, then returned his attention to his test, his fingers still over his eye.

'What did he do?' Tsukiko could see no outward sign that anything had happened, but a few seconds later, he began writing away, having discovered the answers somehow.

Impressive. She had no idea how he'd done that. 'That one's crafty,' she thought, tilting her head contemplatively. 'I'll have to keep an eye on him.'

With twenty minutes left, the Sand kid with the face paint went to the bathroom, and most people began to slow their writing. She imagined that more than a few were waiting for that magical tenth question, hoping it would bail them out.

'Half and hour,' she mused, watching Midori. 'I wonder if she cheated or not.' Either way, it was quite an accomplishment. And, if she did it on her own, she might be rewarded bonus points for correct answers that were obviously her own work. The chunin plants had the answers, but showed none of their work. A genin who did would be rewarded for it, just as she had been.

Tsukiko smiled to herself.

* * *

THEN:

It soon became very apparent that Itachi and Tsukiko would not be making friends with their classmates, much to the younger girl's displeasure. She had been prepared to be friendly to everyone, but Fate had other plans. The entire class was divided into two groups, those who were jealous of them, and those who were so in awe that they couldn't string two words together. This group made up the majority of the class, and they avoided the two talented children like the plague. And when someone did manage to speak to either of them, both Tsukiko's and Itachi's answers were so precise and grown-up sounding that the person became too intimidated to ever talk to them again.

As for the jealous ones, they made the mistake of thinking Tsukiko or Itachi gave a crap what they thought. These classmates were especially annoying, because they seemed determined to try and make one of them mess up. Rude notes, whispered remarks, even small pranks, they all seemed to bounce off the two. Tsukiko was sometimes bothered that the people she'd wanted to befriend were so petty, but she was used to it. The kids in her old village would actually physically hurt her, small as she was back then. Compared to them, the antics of her classmates were about as harmful as a pebble was to a mountain. Of course, it was nice to know that, due to their jealousy, they were training harder. At least her presence was helpful in that regard.

"Uchiha Itachi and Amaya Tsukiko," their teacher called out. "Could you come to the front?"

Obligingly, they both stood and proceeded to the front of the classroom.

"Here you are. You both did very well." He handed them the results of their last exam. On both papers, there was a large circle drawn around the score "100." "You two are the only ones to get perfect scores on the test."

Amidst gasps from the class, one voice stood out. "I'll bet she cheated off of Itachi."

' _Kikyo, again?'_ Tsukiko thought crossly.

Kikyo Aihara, a pretty girl with long brown hair and green eyes, had taken quite a liking to Itachi, and a dislike to Tsukiko. She was the leader (if you could call her that) of the jealous group of girls, and was particularly annoying to Tsukiko, listening her brag about the one time Itachi had handed her a fallen kunai.

"No, Itachi cheated off of Tsukiko!"

' _And there's Toma.'_

Toma Fujishiro was Kikyo's opposite, and led the boys against Itachi. A handsome boy with brown hair and dark eyes, he was a bit of a loudmouth, and seemed to somehow be popular with boys his age. He had at least tried to befriend Tsukiko, but was so obviously jealous of Itachi that she couldn't really stand to be around him. Plus, Itachi always got grumpy when she talked to him.

Itachi scowled slightly, bowing his head to the teacher. "Annoying," he muttered out of the corner of his mouth, glaring at Toma.

"Thank you, sensei," Tsukiko said politely, also bowing her head. As she turned to walk back to her seat, she whispered conspiratorially to the older boy beside her. "Right? As if I'd cheat off you."

She giggled as his scowl deepened, and he walked quickly to his seat, ignoring her laughter.

Itachi and Tsukiko were a near perfect team, but that was partly due to their weaknesses. When it came to the academic part of training, Tsukiko had a slight edge. Sure, they'd both gotten perfect scores, but Tsukiko did it _faster._ To Itachi, the time it took to do something was almost more important than the score itself, and he became quite irritable whenever Tsukiko beat him in an assignment, which was nearly always.

But, he had an edge on her. Physically, he was more advanced. Again, though the two never missed any of the easy targets set up by the teacher, he was faster than her. Even if she used the Gensogan, (which she used only during their private training) he could still beat her most of the time. In that sense, they balanced out, and made the other work harder. This was a relief to Tsukiko, for it was a hidden fear of hers that Itachi would become so strong, he would begin to treat her like he did their classmates, as if she were a bother.

She couldn't exactly pinpoint when it was precisely that the thought occurred to her that Itachi might outgrow her. Perhaps Kikyo's harsh words had reached her subconscious, creating the fear that her best friend would look at her with the same uncaring eyes he directed to his peers. The thought was paralyzing to the young girl.

Unknowingly, Itachi had become the most important person in her life. He was her friend, her brother, her trainer, her partner, her reason for existing. In truth, if he hadn't been so kind to her when she'd first arrived at his home, hadn't invited her to train, she might've given up on life altogether. In the end, it was he who had saved her, and she couldn't lose him. So, she forced herself to train harder, to keep up with Itachi Uchiha and be worthy of being his sister. But there was a problem.

Three months had passed quickly, and the two ninjas-in-training had received outstanding scores in each and every class thrown at them.

But it was too easy, and both children were worried that they weren't improving. After all, 100 was the top score, and they couldn't ever get higher than that. This meant that there was nothing left for them to learn, and they were essentially wasting their time. School grades and actual ability were not the same thing. As Itachi had pointed out on their first day, it was one thing to plan something out, and a completely different thing to put the plan into practice. That is what school felt like, compared to their own intense training.

* * *

"Um," a sweet, hesitant voice said suddenly, gaining Itachi's attention. He turned around slowly, almost unwillingly breaking the staring contest he'd been having with the library doors. Tsukiko had insisted on visiting the library to get a book on advanced kunai and shuriken moves, so he was stuck waiting for her.

In the hallway after school, most of the boys were waiting for friends to go play with and girls were chatting and squealing with laughter. Filled with a sense of liberation from the formalities of lessons, they were excessively energetic.

"You're Uchiha Itachi, right?" The girl asked, looking at him with upturned eyes. Her brown hair reached down to her shoulders, and she had both arms crossed in front of her chest. The eyes looking at him from under thin brows had the same flat onyx color as he did, marking her as an Uchiha.

He would never understand how it was that the color black could look so different. Tsukiko's eyes were just as dark as his, yet hers seemed to shine with a certain charm that made him feel bittersweet somehow. She had seen horrendous things, seen her mother's dead body, yet somehow managed to remain cheerful. Her eyes told her story, shining with unshed tears and a hope that she could protect others. This girl in front of him had flat black eyes, still innocent of the world's horrors. He was immediately on-guard, wary that she would be like Kikyo, a loud fangirl intent on wasting his time.

"I am," he answered, impatient.

"I-I'm also a member of the Uchiha clan."

"You are?" He returned curtly.

It wasn't just with this girl. Itachi always had this attitude at school. Most people would crumble at this point in the conversation. And then they would never try to step into his space again.

"My name's Uchiha Izumi. I'm in the class next door."

"So?" It wasn't that he was trying to be unfriendly. On the contrary, he had nothing against any of his classmates, and would quite like to have a good relationship with them. But he was a naturally impatient person, and liked people to get to the point. He wasn't going to change just because he rubbed someone the wrong way. If they didn't like it, then they could go stutter around someone else.

' _Where is Tsukiko?'_

Shisui had the day off today for the first time in a while, so once school was over, they were supposed to train together. He didn't have time to dawdle, making small talk.

"We take the same way home, huh?"

"There's only one Uchiha compound. Of course we take the same way."

"Itachi! Be nice!"

Tsukiko's bossy voice echoed down the hall, making him wince slightly as several heads turned in his direction.

"You're loud, Tsukiko," he responded, turning his own head to look at her.

She made quite the picture, holding three enormous books easily in one hand, a faint line of chakra indicating that the books had been heavy enough to warrant a little boost in strength. At his reprimand, she stuck her tongue out at him, and he felt a spark of amusement.

"I wouldn't be if you weren't so mean all the time!" Tsukiko glared a moment longer to make her point, then directed a softened expression to Izumi, bowing her head. "Hi, I'm Amaya Tsukiko. Nice to meet you."

Despite his impatience, Itachi couldn't help but feel affection for Tsukiko. She was gentle and kind, always willing to help anyone. She made him more relaxed and open around others, because as long as she was happy, he was content to waste time talking.

Izumi returned the bow, her smile seemingly a little forced. "Uchiha Izumi."

"How can we help you, Izumi?" Tsukiko asked cheerfully, not at all put off by the girl's sudden change in attitude.

The brunette girl lowered her eyes shyly, looking back at Itachi. "I was wondering if maybe we could walk home together, since we're both going to the _Uchiha_ compound?"

While not trying to be rude, her message was abundantly clear. She wanted to be alone with Itachi, and Tsukiko was in the way.

Tsukiko paused, her face tightening before she smiled apologetically. "Sorry, but Itachi and I aren't going home yet."

Izumi looked confused. "Why would you walk home with Itachi? Is your house on the way?" Her concealed impatience was obvious, and she seemed to be under the assumption that Tsukiko was some nobody bothering Itachi.

Still, he was surprised at the burst of anger he felt at the girl. It had only been there a moment, but hurt had flashed across Tsukiko's face, swallowed by her bittersweet eyes. His jaw clenched with tension. He was a very gentle person at heart, and absolutely hated fighting of any sort, but he couldn't help the swirl of anger and protectiveness that rose when someone hurt Tsukiko.

"I live with Itachi," she said quietly.

"Oh!" Izumi nodded in sudden understanding. "You're the orphan Lord Fugaku took in! My mother told me about you." She seemed to deflate slightly, frowning in sympathy. Like she understood what Tsukiko had gone through. "I'm sorry about your par—"

"We're leaving, Tsukiko." Itachi's curt command cut through the mounting atmosphere.

"Sure!" Tsukiko chirped, her smile not reaching her eyes. "Have a nice day, Izumi."

"B-But—"

"Sorry, we're in a hurry." Itachi turned his back to her, and grabbed Tsukiko's free arm. He dragged her down the hallway, ignoring her spluttered protests.

Izumi sighed, casting a forlorn look their way.

* * *

"Itachi! What's the matter with you?!" Tsukiko yelled, trying to pull her wrist free. Itachi had dragged her all the way to their training site, never once saying a word, his body tight with anger.

Very few people would be able to tell, since his face betrayed nothing. But Tsukiko had been around him long enough to tell that the small boy was furious. It unnerved her, knowing something had gotten past his usual calm and gentle disposition.

"It's nothing," he finally answered, releasing her. "That girl was annoying me." He turned to look at her, calmer now that they were back on schedule.

Tsukiko blinked. ' _That's it? Seriously?'_

"Itachi, you really should try to be more patient," she huffed, crossing her arms, ignoring the happiness that stemmed from knowing Itachi had been annoyed by the pretty Uchiha girl. "You won't be able to stop anyone from fighting if no one likes you."

He cocked his head. "Why does that matter? If I'm the strongest, then they'll have to listen." He said it with genuine curiosity, as if he didn't understand his egotistical words. And she understood, to a point. Itachi had known the horrors of war, which had both taught him that strength wins, and stunted him emotionally. He felt impassive towards most people, not wanting to cause harm to anyone, but not caring about them either.

"No," Tsukiko shook her head, her white hair whipping around. "If they don't like you, then you're just a bully. If they like you, then they'll listen."

"Hmph," Itachi said, unconvinced. "I am nice."

"Yeah, but no one at school can tell, because you don't smile."

"Nothing they do makes me want to smile."

Tsukiko laughed. "Itachi, you're so weird!" She shook her head and began doing warmups, happy that she at least, could make him smile.

In truth, she was glad he was rude to Izumi, and glad that she was the only one who got to see his cold eyes warm with affection or laughter. She knew she shouldn't feel insignificant around him, shouldn't let herself be hurt by someone else's words, but still…

Why hadn't she been formally named an Uchiha? Was she not good enough? That thought haunted her, made her feel timid around other members of the clan. The adults didn't like her very much, but she wasn't sure why. Sure, she didn't look much like an Uchiha, with her unusual white hair and Gensogan, but she was one of the top students in her class. Wasn't that enough?

Perhaps sensing her quiet misery, Itachi said nothing, silently warming up beside her in their training grove.

A few minutes later, she was distracted from her musings by Shisui's arrival. He immediately put her at ease, his teasing and bossy behavior driving the depressing thoughts from her mind.

For training that day, they ran. For about four hours. At their top speed. Maintaining their top speed the entire time, they ran for four hours through the woods outside, ending only when they reached the park at the center of the Uchiha clan compound. Anyone not diligent with their ninja training wouldn't have lasted five minutes.

"So, how's school?" Shisui asked, wiping away the sweat on his forehead with a towel. The young shinobi was breathing hard, and his sudden question caught the two younger children by surprise.

Itachi's shoulders jerked up and down in an exhausted shrug, and he exhaled heavily.

"Fine, I guess," Tsukiko gasped, leaning against a tree. She was proud that she had never wavered, and kept up with the boys the whole run. She knew that her legs would be incredibly sore the next day, but it was worth it to know that she had done just as well as Shisui.

Shisui looked slightly cooler than her or Itachi, and if she wasn't so tired, she knew she would have giggled at the slight glare the younger boy gave the older ninja. "It's way better for us to train with you," Itachi explained.

"But the two of you have gotten pretty good at talking since you started the academy," Shisui teased. "Tsukiko is actually a chatterbox when you get to know her, and you can actually form long sentences now, Itachi."

He grinned as two sets of eyes narrowed at him.

"I haven't changed," Itachi said curtly.

"That's true, I guess you've always been pretty mouthy." Shisui laughed and put a hand on Itachi's head. "I guess there's no one in your class who can take you on?"

Itachi said nothing, and Tsukiko blinked at him curiously. ' _Why's he waiting? He knows there's no one.'_

"Is there?" Shisui asked, surprised.

Itachi shook his head from side to side, his friend's hand still pressing down on it. "I don't know what kind of grades everyone else gets. But as far as I can tell from watching them in the schoolyard, there's no one amazing or anything."

"So you don't know anything about your classmates?"

Itachi shrugged, seemingly unaffected by Shisui's disapproval.

"They don't really talk to us much," Tsukiko explained weakly.

"They're your comrades, Itachi," Shisui said sternly.

"All I've thought about since I was a little kid was how to be the best ninja," Itachi said stubbornly. "I don't have any energy to spend on anyone else."

Shisui knelt down to Itachi's height, gesturing Tsukiko to come closer. She did so, standing before him, feeling oddly guilty. She tried to get along with her classmates, but they were so far behind her that it was hard to find common ground.

"Listen to me, both of you." Shisui's voice was serious, something out of character for him. "I know that it doesn't seem like a big deal now, but those are the people you're going to be going on missions with. It's important to know that you can trust them, and reassure them that they can trust you. If you really want to rid the world of fighting, then those people are your responsibility, your duty to protect. The village is your family, and your classmates are part of that. You'll never become strong if you fight for your own gain. It's by fighting for someone else that you grow."

Wide-eyed, both children nodded, and Tsukiko couldn't help but think of the Nine-Tails attack. When she had been protecting Mikoto and Sasuke, the elements had been easy to control. She was stronger, because she had to be in order to save her loved ones.

Shisui must have seen something in their eyes that convinced him. "I'm not saying you have to be everyone's best friend," he said, smile returning. "But try to at least know their names, okay?" His hand tousled Itachi's hair. "There's no one more amazing than you two at that school. I'll tell you that right now."

"Quit it." Itachi pushed his hand away, his hair a mess.

"As long as we have you two, the future of the Uchihas is secure," Shisui said, laughing. Tsukiko giggled, but couldn't help but notice that his smile was a little sad somehow.

* * *

Listening to Sasuke breathing softly in his sleep beside her, Tsukiko laid down on her futon. In the dark, she heard Itachi laying down on his own futon, on the other side of Sasuke. It had been just over a year since they moved to the new compound, and Tsukiko was very used to the look of the ceiling above her bed.

Despite being physically exhausted, Tsukiko was having trouble sleeping. Usually she would sit on the front porch watching the moon until she was tired, but Fugaku and Mikoto were still awake as well.

Beyond the bedroom where the three children slept was the family's dinner table, where the two adults were quietly conversing.

"Itachi and Tsuki's grades are amazing, hm?" Mikoto's voice was clear, even behind the sliding door that separated the two rooms. She apparently thought the children were already asleep.

Tsukiko stiffened at the sound of her name, trying hard to not eavesdrop. She stared absently at the ceiling, the adults' conversation as clear as if she'd been standing next to them.

"I'm really proud of her," Mikoto continued. "She brings a lot of honor to the family."

"Yes, it's quite fortunate Lord Third allowed her to live with us," Fugaku's deep voice rumbled. "I don't know anyone who unlocked their kekkei genkai at such a young age."

Tsukiko's cheeks turned pink at the praise, her heartbeat increasing.

"Yes, and she's learning to control it all on her own," Mikoto said admiringly.

"I spoke with her teacher, and it seems she doesn't use the Gensogan at all in school," Fugaku said thoughtfully. "I wonder why."

"Tsuki told me it made everything too easy!" Mikoto's laugh filled Tsukiko with happiness, and the young girl grinned broadly in the darkness.

"Then it's good she's not using it," Fugaku said approvingly. "It's foolish to rely solely on a kekkei genkai. I'm glad she understands that."

"Itachi too! Both of them find the work far too easy. It's really quite incredible."

Tsukiko felt rather than saw Itachi still at his name, and was relieved she wasn't the only one listening. Carefully, so as to not disturb Sasuke, she rolled onto her side and stretched her arm out. Her hand touched Itachi's and she held it tightly, over the sleeping baby's head.

He gripped her hand in return, not saying a word as his father spoke.

"He is my son after all."

"I suppose so."

"How is he in school?"

"What do you mean? Look at these excellent grades—"

"I'm not talking about that," Itachi's father said, cutting his mother off. "Does he have any friends?"

"He doesn't really talk about his friends."

"That boy doesn't know how to take it easy."

"That's not such a bad thing."

"But he goes too far. It's like he's rushing, like he's hurrying to become a full-fledged ninja." Fugaku sounded concerned, not liking the idea of his eldest son already doing missions and being put in danger.

Tsukiko lifted her head slightly to look at Itachi. He was lying on his back, his hand still holding hers firmly. In the faint light seeping in from the dining room, she could see the pink on his cheeks.

' _Lord Fugaku sees right through him…'_

She squeezed his hand reassuringly, and he turned to look at her, his expression unreadable. "I believe in you," she mouthed, making his cheeks darken further.

"The way he's so earnest about ninjahood, sometimes I feel like I should take lessons from him, even though I'm his father…! But a loose thread stretched too taut is fragile. I'm worried he needs to let loose somehow."

"He's a gentle boy. You just have to watch Itachi cuddling Sasuke to know that. He'll be fine. And lately, he and Tsuki have really been looking up to Shisui like a big brother. They train together, and are all quite close."

"Shisui of the Body Flicker, hm?"

Tsukiko was also aware that Shisui had been drawing attention to himself as a ninja lately, garnering the name, "Body Flicker." It was yet another reason she was so in awe of him.

"It's all well and good to have an older friend too, but it'd be nice if he had someone his own age to talk to, other than Tsukiko. Those two feed off each other and get more intense every day. They're just children. They should know at least a little what fun feels like."

"I have to disagree," Mikoto said mischievously. "I think Tsuki is the only thing keeping Itachi from being completely serious all the time. Just yesterday, I was watching her and Itachi play with Sasuke. They didn't know I was there, of course, or I don't think they would've been this silly. Tsukiko was dancing around with Sasuke, making funny faces at him. At first I thought it was Sasuke laughing, but Itachi was practically on the ground he was laughing so hard! I've never seen him that happy, and baby Sasuke was having the time of his life."

A mortified gasp escaped Tsukiko, and she looked at Itachi with saucer-like eyes, her face flaming. She had felt unusually silly that day, and had decided to see if she could make Sasuke laugh, so she had acted like a fool. Itachi had joined in, and all three of them had exploded into laughter. It was a happy memory, but an embarrassing one.

Itachi looked equally aghast, his own face resembling a tomato. He certainly would _not_ have laughed like that if he'd known his mother was watching.

' _I underestimated Lady Mikoto's skill.'_ It was easy to forget that the woman was also an accomplished ninja.

From the dining room, Fugaku let out a quiet chuckle. "Really? I wouldn't have believed it."

"Yup," Mikoto said giggling. "He really cares about her. And their teamwork is incredible. Have you seen them training? It's amazing."

"I have," Fugaku said, his voice becoming thoughtful. "And you're right, they do make an impressive pair. I'll have to ensure they're assigned to the same team when they graduate…"

Warm gratitude for Lord Fugaku flowed through Tsukiko, and her now sleepy gaze met Itachi's. "We really are a good team," she mouthed at him, smiling.

He smiled back, his gaze heavy with sleep. "I don't need other friends," he mouthed back, echoing her words. "I don't need anyone but you at my side."

Tsukiko closed her eyes, feeling as if she was surrounded by warm and loving people. She gave Itachi's hand one last squeeze before sleep took her.

* * *

When Mikoto walked in the next morning, she was greeted with the adorable sight of her younger son cradled between Tsukiko and Itachi, their hands still intertwined above Sasuke's head while they slept.

Quickly, she snuck away and grabbed both her husband and a camera.

Fugaku chuckled at the scene, while Mikoto took several pictures, both parents proud to have such a loving family.

And, for the next several years, that photo hung proudly in the hallway, bringing pink to both Itachi and Tsukiko's faces whenever they passed it.

* * *

A.N. Aaaaand that's it for now! I hope you guys liked it!

Note: Izumi is going to have a large role in the past story, as Tsukiko's romantic rival and her best female friend. As such, her personality might seem a touch different than in the original work. She's still going to be sweet and Itachi's cheerleader, but obviously there will be tension between the two girls as they get older.

Anyway, see you on a Friday for the end of the first exam!


	9. Chapter 8

A.N. Yay! Friday! If you guys don't mind, there's something at the end of the chapter I'd like to discuss, so if you would please give it some serious consideration, I'd really appreciate it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Naruto Shippuden, any of its characters, or the Itachi books.

Now:

'Fifteen minutes left.'

Tsukiko silently stood, placing her clipboard on the now-empty chair. Catching Ibiki's eye, she gave him a respectful nod as she passed, signaling that all was well. She ignored the curious eyes that followed her as she smoothly made her way to the door.

Their plan entailed her leaving just before the tenth question was announced, as her team would likely look to her for some kind of verification of Ibiki's claim. He was going to tell them that if they got the tenth question wrong, they would be immediately expelled from the ranks of the shinobi. No doubt the young Leaf genin (not just her own team) would try to read her face. Overall, it was better that she left before that moment, if to preserve the integrity of the test, if nothing else. As an added bonus, she would be able to watch those who left, with orders to intimidate and frighten genin of rival villages, particularly the Sand.

Opening the door, she was greeted by the young Sand genin who had left to use the restroom. Stepping aside, she grinned at the "proctor" following the boy. One more had entered their ranks before the test began, and the large bundle she had previously noticed on the boy's back had mysteriously disappeared.

"Good luck," she said with a wink, closing the door in the startled boy's face.

The large room was quiet now, empty of anyone but herself. Someone had helpfully cleaned up after the young shinobi, mopping up the mess that the...rowdier bunch had caused.

' _Intimidation without causing damage…'_ she mused, mulling over Ibiki's order. Obviously she'd have to use her Gensogan, but the damage thing was an issue. The room was plenty big enough for her to let loose a little…

' _I can't use Earth in here, or Water, and Wind isn't flashy enough. Fire could work...or…'_ She grinned, suddenly excited to fit some extra training in. Even after three years, she'd yet to master her newest technique, but she was making steady progress.

Standing in the middle of the room, so as to limit the damage, she cracked her neck and closed her eyes, grasping for the elusive power.

"Haaah…" Tsukiko exhaled slowly, her left hand grasping her right wrist, palm up. It was something she'd learned from Kakashi, a trick to funnel chakra quickly into her hand. And for what she had in mind, she would need as much chakra as quickly as possible, to create friction between the energy and supercharge the air.

Her opening eyes slowly bled white as she focused, biting her lip in concentration. Tsukiko's hand prickled, and her hair began to drift upwards as electricity crackled in her palm. Lightning burst from her hand in a controlled flash, arching up and across the room in a bright explosion of light.

Short puffs of air escaped her lips as she struggled to hold on to the lightning. Like Fire, Lightning came from within her, and was created by clashing different chakras to create a current. And that current had to be directed, controlled, or it would quickly dissipate. But it was incredibly difficult, because she had to control multiple elements at once. Her open palm pulled Wind in, while the hand on her wrist created Fire to heat the air into electricity. And even after all that, she had to control the current like Water. It took every ounce of concentration she had.

Behind her, a muted exclamation of alarm signaled the arrival of failed genin.

Grinning, Tsukiko allowed the lightning to twist around her like a snake, sparking and fluctuating wildly, but not hurting her. After a moment of showing off, she cut the flow of electricity and turned to the large group of stunned faces that greeted her.

"Hello," she said cheerily, waving. "Don't mind me, I'm just getting ready for the next task."

Instant relief that they were disqualified swept through the genin as they left, sticking close to the wall to stay as far away from her as possible.

Tsukiko laughed lightly and switched to Fire, going through her practiced movements. No other genin came out, so she assumed that the rest had passed and that Ibiki was explaining the twist in his game.

A split second later, there came the faint sound of glass shattering, loud enough to be heard through the thick door.

Instantly, Tsukiko swung the door open, deadly fire curling around her arms in preparation for an attack. Once inside, however, she saw that her fears were unnecessary, though not entirely unfounded.

"Heads up, boys and girls, this is no time to be celebrating! I'll be your next proctor, Anko Mitarashi."

Anko, a pretty woman in her twenties with long brown/grey hair spiked up in a ponytail, had evidently burst through the window in her haste, even hanging a banner to announce the second exam. She wore mesh leotard that ended a few inches above her knees, and an orange mini-skirt with a long beige coat. Specially trained in being as off-putting and insane as possible, Anko was a little hard to get used to.

Without waiting for anyone to say anything, she continued speaking. "Everyone ready for the second test? Good!" Raising her fist, she shouted, "Follow me!"

Dead silence greeted her order, and Tsukiko sighed as Ibiki emerged from behind the ridiculous banner. "You're early, again," he growled.

To her credit, she had the self-awareness to feel embarrassed, her cheeks turning red while she laughed awkwardly.

"Sorry, sorry," she grinned rubbing her head. "I just got excited." Seeing Tsukiko, she gave her a thumbs up. "Hey! I saw the failures running out of the building looking pretty freaked out! Whatever you did musta' scared the crap outta them!"

Tsukiko coughed, her own cheeks darkening.

"Anyway," Anko turned her attention to the genin, frowning. "How many are there?" She clicked her tongue. "Ibiki, you let all these guys pass? You're test was too easy." She glared at the older male, her light brown eyes narrowed. "You must be getting soft."

"Or it could be a stronger crop of candidates this year," he countered.

Anko's critical eye studied the group. "Hmm. They sure don't look it." She grinned. "Trust me, by the time I'm done with them, more than half will be eliminated."

' _But hopefully not dead,'_ Tsukiko added mentally.

Anko chuckled. "This is going to be fun." Straightening, she raised her voice. "Alright, you maggots have had it easy so far, but things are going to be different starting now! So follow me to your next location."

Obligingly, the genin slowly stood up, still caught off-guard by Anko's...odd personality.

As if to prove this, the older jounin suddenly stopped short and held up a hand. "Oh, yeah!" With a wide grin, she darted over and grabbed Tsukiko's hand. "I forgot to introduce our Special Proctor! You might have noticed her, kids, sitting in on this portion of the exam. Well get used to her because she's the proctor that connects us all!"

' _WHAT IS SHE DOING?!'_ Tsukiko mentally screamed, fixing Anko with her coldest glare. Her involvement was not to be highlighted like this!

Given no choice, the younger jounin sighed and introduced herself. "Hello, I'm Tsukiko Amaya, the Special Proctor of this exam. I in no way take part in the evaluation of your skills, but am merely a spectator to make sure everything runs smoothly." She bowed. "I will see you all at the next exam."

With that, Tsukiko jumped out the broken window, mindful of the glass, and ran off to punch something. Uncharacteristic anger swirled in her mind as she headed to the next site.

Anko laughed loudly. "Oops, I made her mad! Ah, well!" She paused. "Oh! I didn't get to tell her that the plan changed!"

* * *

Then:

"I-l...can't...do it." Tsukiko's stunned whisper, filled with despair, frightened both Itachi and Fugaku with its intensity. The young girl fell to her knees, horror etched into her face.

They were out on the training grounds, the morning sun shining brightly. The sky was clear and beautiful, birds calling out to one another from their nests in the trees. The trees themselves seemed greener than usual, competing with the vivid colors of the flowers blooming, which in turn filled the air with a light perfume. It was a magical day.

And one of the worst days of Tsukiko's life.

It hadn't started that way, not at all. Fugaku was off for once, and Itachi had wasted no time in demanding that he teach them Ninjutsu. The academy didn't teach Ninjutsu until their second year, something Itachi and Tsukiko both found unacceptable.

Fugaku, brightening at the chance to spend some time with his eldest son, had agreed good-naturedly. As soon as breakfast was over, the trio had set out for the training grounds. Rather than the wooded area where Itachi and Tsukiko usually practiced, Fugaku led them to a tree-covered clearing with a large pond. Why he did, he didn't explain, and Tsukiko was too excited to ask why.

Electricity flowed down her spine, a strange mix of excitement and nerves. On one hand, Lord Fugaku, arguably the strongest Uchiha, was going to be teaching them Ninjutsu! On the other hand, she would have to do her very best to impress him. Maybe if she did, he'd recognize her as an Uchiha!

"The first jutsu you must learn," the older man began, turning to the two attentive children. "Is substitution. This jutsu is used for escape and works by teleporting your body a safe distance away and replacing it with something inanimate that has taken your form. A log, with a substitution tag, is usually used, as it is light and easy to substitute. These are the hand signs." He quickly demonstrated, going through the motions once quickly to show the ideal speed, then a second time slowly, actually showing them the specific movements. "This one has fewer hand signs because it is not especially difficult, so long as you clearly picture where it is you mean to teleport to. It cannot be very far away, so you must be clever. Understand?"

Tsukiko nodded, determination to impress the head of the clan burning in her mind. Beside her, Itachi also nodded, happy that his father was teaching them. He had been asking the man to show them jutsu for weeks, and it seemed like work was always getting in the way. But not today.

"Alright," Fugaku said approvingly. He reached into his pocket and pulled out two small sandbags. "If you are ready, I'll throw these at you. The goal is to use substitution to dodge them."

Taking a deep breath, Tsukiko felt for her chakra, her eyes darting around for a suitable teleportation site. Today, she was dressed in a dark blue kunoichi outfit, which had been her present for her seventh birthday. It was a deep shadowy blue tunic that stopped just above her knees with matching training pants. White designs curled around the edges, and best of all, the white and red Uchiha symbol was on the back, marking her as a member of the clan. It was her favorite outfit, and she had worn it on purpose to show Fugaku that she would be proud to be an Uchiha.

Itachi was wearing his usual attire of black training pants and a high-collared shirt. He too was on edge, eyes darting around as he waited for his father to move.

The stern man seemed completely at ease, giving no sign of his reluctance to throw something at his children. He knew that it would do nothing more than give them a nasty bruise, but he didn't want to hurt them. Still training was training, and his was excellent. His body was completely relax, a small smile playing at the corners of his mouth. Suddenly, his wrists flicked, his only movement. His facial expression never changed, giving no hint to what he had just done. The sandbags flew with deadly accuracy, ensuring a painful punch if they connected.

They had a split second to react.

Tsukiko moved quickly, her hands a blur as her chakra activated. One moment she was watching the smiling face of Itachi's father, and the next, she was in the branches of a tree she had picked out.

It was not comfortable. She had ended up in the middle of the branches, as intended, but they were closely packed and jabbed at her from all angles. She was well-trained, however, and showed no sign of her discomfort, or any other movements that would give away her location. All of her attention was directed toward the scene below, where she was fascinated to see herself about to be hit.

The sandbag hit her substitute in the jaw, and Tsukiko winced at the noise of the bag hitting flesh. ' _Glad that's not me.'_

 _Poof!_

With a puff of smoke, her body vanished, a log in its place.

Itachi's substitute also returned to log form with a puff, the young boy nowhere to be seen.

Scanning carefully, Tsukiko spotted him crouched deep within the branches of another tree, his eyes flicking around to find her. Proud that she had spotted him first, she grinned cockily at him.

Perhaps feeling her gaze, his eyes found hers, and the corners of his mouth turned up at her wide grin. They had both succeeded on their first try.

"Very good," Fugaku called, his keen eyes easily picking them out. "I thought you two would master that one fairly quickly." He smiled proudly as the two young ninjas-in-training landed lightly in front of him. "Keep practicing substitution in your daily training, and you should be able to get used to the feeling quickly enough that you don't need hand signs to do it. This is one of the only jutsus that, once mastered, requires no motion on your part other than picking a spot to emerge from. Usually, you would either use it to run from an opponent, or use it to confuse them long enough to counterattack."

Tsukiko nodded excitedly, her adrenaline pumping. In another time, what she was doing would've been called magic. It filled her with a feeling of confidence, like she could actually meet her goal of being stronger than anyone else. She brushed some dirt off her arm as Fugaku continued.

"The next jutsu I'd like you to learn is the clone jutsu. This one is a little more advanced, so pay close attention." Fugaku made no hand signs, and instead simply held two fingers in front of his face. "All I'm doing is letting my chakra fill me up, and imagining a double of myself appearing next to me. This takes very little chakra, just enough that you feel it buzzing in every part of you. You must be careful to imagine yourself fully, or otherwise your clone will have no ears or something of the like."

Tsukiko nodded, inhaling deeply. On her exhale, she imagined a thin wave of chakra flowing through her, and was happy to feel buzzing in her fingers, toes, and yes, even in her ears. She held two fingers up, and imagined the chakra leaving her to form an identical clone.

 _Poof! Poof!_

Two puffs of smoke later, and Fugaku was seeing double. He nodded, and stepped closer to the clones, examining them carefully. "Perfect," he pronounced, doing a quick walk-around. "Again, you should be able to make two or three of them by graduation, so keep practicing."

Tsukiko stared at her clone, fascinated. It turned to look at her and waved. She smiled, and reached out to touch its hand, before the clone's hand vanished a moment, her touch going right through it.

Immediately, she frowned. What good were these clones if they couldn't fight? She was confident enough to turn to Itachi's father, who was watching them silently as they both explored their doppelgängers.

"Lord Fugaku?" Tsukiko asked, slightly nervous.

"Yes, Tsukiko?"

"Is there any way to attack with clones?" She waved a hand through her clone, dissipating the image. "These aren't solid, so they can't actually be involved in combat. They're good for a distraction, or escape, but that's about it. Is there a way to make them more effective?"

Fugaku frowned, staring hard at Tsukiko for a long moment. She felt her nervousness increase, and forced herself to not shift from foot to foot.

' _Did I say something wrong?'_

"I also want to know, Dad," Itachi spoke up, frowning at his clone. "These clones aren't very useful."

Fugaku let out a long breath, slightly troubled. "Yes, but it is a forbidden jutsu."

"Why?"

"Because, Itachi, not only do the clones take substantially more chakra, but they can be dangerous. Any damage they take that's not fatal is felt by the original as soon as the jutsu is broken. But, they can attack and be useful for spying, as any knowledge they gather is also passed on to the original." As he spoke, his gaze flicked between the expressionless Itachi and intrigued Tsukiko, making sure they paid close attention.

"Will you teach us?" Itachi clearly thought any damage sustainability was well worth knowing the jutsu, forbidden or not.

The older man paused, his expression torn. "...Yes, but you must promise me you'll both be very careful." In truth, he didn't want to teach them such a dangerous jutsu, but he was curious to see what they could do.

"Yes, Dad."

"Yes, sir."

"Very well. The only difference is that you must give your clone enough chakra that they can also perform jutsus. The easiest way to go about it is to simply split your chakra in half, but that is only if you plan to attack with your clone. You will not receive the excess chakra back. I usually give my clone about just enough for them to use a fireball attack, meaning I can make several. Whatever amount you give them, it must be quick and habitual. Also, this is a stronger jutsu, so you must call out, 'Shadow Clone Jutsu.'"

"Shadow Clone Jutsu," Tsukiko repeated, liking the sound of it. "Okay, here it goes!"

Immediately, she knew that her clones should have enough chakra to activate the Gensogan. It didn't take very much to do, and they could coordinate and mix elements for even more effect.

Closing her eyes, she repeated the cloning process, faster this time, giving up about an eighth of her total chakra. It was a scary loss, but worth it if the clone could attack.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" She called out, Itachi half a second behind her.

Immediately, she felt the loss of her chakra like a punch to the gut, and was glad she didn't give up more.

Once again, Fugaku was seeing double, but this time, the clones were moving.

"You did it!" Tsukiko's shadow clone said, clapping.

"Hm," Itachi's clone nodded approvingly.

"Well done!" Fugaku exclaimed, his face excited. "Of course you two would have no trouble at all!"

Tsukiko's face glowed red, and she took a moment to stare in fascination at the two clones, before releasing the jutsu and allowing hers to vanish.

Next was transformations, which was just like cloning, except you imagined the clone like a blanket over yourself, turning you into whomever you pictured. Easy. Itachi and Tsukiko both turned into the other, which was rather strange to say the least. Seeing little expression on her face and a huge grin on Itachi's face had unnerved Fugaku, who hurriedly suggested they move on.

"Alright, we have time for one last one before we need to return home," Fugaku said, looking at the sky. "This is an advanced one, so I need you two to pay very close attention."

Tsukiko and Itachi stood next to him, looking out over the lake.

Fugaku's hands moved through several different hand signs in less than a second. "Firestyle: Fireball Jutsu!" He took a deep breath, and a huge ball of fire shot from his mouth, the reflection making it look like the lake was on fire.

"Amazing!" Tsukiko exclaimed, excitedly. Fire was by far her favorite element, and already her hands itched to mimic Itachi's father.

"This is a special jutsu of the Uchiha clan, although anyone can learn it," Fugaku said, smiling at the awe in his children's eyes. "These are the hand signs." He slowly moved through them, trusting the children to memorize them on the first try. "For safety's sake, we'll do this one at a time. You should feel chakra rise in your throat, and all you have to do is blow. Stay focused, for if you waver, you can easily burn your hands and mouth. Itachi, you first."

Itachi nodded, determination blazing in his eyes. He moved through the hand signs nearly as fast as his father, taking a deep breath.

A ball of flame identical to Fugaku's shot from Itachi's mouth, and the older man applauded, grinning widely. "That's my boy! Excellent!"

Tsukiko trembled with excitement, ready to take her turn.

"Okay, Tsukiko, whenever you're ready."

She nodded, her hands moving just as fast as Itachi's had. She felt the chakra rise in her throat, and took a deep breath. Quickly, she exhaled, trying to force the chakra out of her body.

Nothing happened.

"W-What?" She had done everything right! Why didn't it work?

Immediately, she tried again, slowing her hand signs. No, they were perfect. Once again, the chakra rose in her throat, and she took a deep breath.

Nothing.

Frantically, she did it again.

"Tsukiko-" Lord Fugaku's voice was gentle.

Nothing.

She ignored the older man, panic beginning to set in. One last time….

...Nothing.

Anxiety and panic rose with the chakra in her throat, and all she could see was the jeering faces of her classmates, laughing at her inability.

' _I can't do it. I can't do it. I can't—'_

Tsukiko fell to her knees, all her fears crashing down on her. She would never be strong, never be good enough to be an Uchiha, never be able to protect anyone. Itachi would see her as a bother, Fugaku would be disappointed, and all those sneering classmates and villagers would be right.

She shook with anger at herself, unshed tears of frustration threatening to overflow and disgrace her further.

"I-l...can't...do it."

Fear flashed on Itachi's face and he hurriedly knelt by her, not understanding what was wrong with her. "It's okay, Tsukiko. It's just one jutsu."

She didn't seem to hear him, and stared out at the water.

The older Uchiha frowned, confused as to why she hadn't been able to perform the jutsu. She had done the hand signs correctly, and should have produced at least a spark. And with her affinity for fire, it should've—

Cold realization hit Fugaku, and his face betrayed his guilt. "Tsukiko," he said gently, kneeling down beside his son to gently pat her hair. "It's not your fault...It's because of the Gensogan."

This got her attention. She lifted her head, and the older man felt his son flinch at the look of agony on her face. A look that someone as young as her should never have to express.

"W-what do you mean?" She stammered, confusion evident.

"There's always a price for using a kekkei genkai, and yours is that you'll never be able to use elemental jutsu," Fugaku's soft rumble felt like he was handing down a curse, shattering her dreams. "You see, most ninja have the type of chakra that uses one or two elements, like fire. This allows them to use elemental-style Ninjutsu. You, on the other hand, have four of the five elements within you, meaning that your chakra is too split to perform normal jutsus. Instead your eye converts your chakra into the type needed to control one element at a time. I wasn't actually sure if that was the case, as the Gensogan hasn't been around for several generations, and it was only a theory," he admitted. "And in truth I was too caught up in the moment to remember that you even had the Gensogan. I'm sorry."

He stood, looking away from them, guilt still etched into his features. "But I'm sure you'll find a way to recreate the Fireball Jutsu using your powers. You're a strong girl, and I have no doubt you'll get past this setback."

Knowing that his presence would only make her feel worse, the older man nodded at the path. "I'll be waiting at home to hear the progress of your training."

Tsukiko nodded numbly, tears welling up. No matter how hard she tried, she'd never be able to learn advanced Ninjutsu. The best she could do was imitate it, likely paling in comparison. And Itachi would fly ahead of her, not thinking twice.

' _I'll never be good enough.'_

* * *

Itachi felt helpless, a feeling that weighed him down and weakened him. Seeing his best friend in so much pain, he was frozen, unable to act. He saw her tears fall, the droplets falling soundlessly to the ground.

Softly, she began to sob.

"Tsukiko!" He exclaimed, horrified. He hated seeing her cry like this, her small body shaking with grief. And he understood, to some extent. If he had been told that he would never be able to use his family's Firestyle jutsus, he would be crushed.

But she had the Gensogan, an incredible power that he'd never have. Who cares if she couldn't do some jutsus, especially if she could just recreate them?

"I'm sorry, Itachi," She said through her tears. "I'm not good enough to be your partner." Her head was down, unable to meet his gaze.

"What are you talking about?" Itachi demanded. "Of course you're good enough to be my partner!"

Tsukiko slowly shook her head, her bleak eyes meeting his. "I can't do the advanced Ninjutsu, and I'm sure the Gensogan will make poor imitations. Meanwhile, you'll learn everything with ease, and I'll be stuck behind. You'll leave me! Because I'm nothing more than a both—ouch!"

Her words, dripping with the cry of an abandoned child, filled him with a desperate emotion. His heart beat frantically, a silent plea for her to stop talking, to stop hurting herself and by extension, him. Fueled with an uncharacteristic panic, Itachi did the only thing he could think of: he jabbed her in the forehead.

Shocked by the sudden pain, Tsukiko glared at him miserably, one hand on the red spot he'd made. "What was that for?" She asked sullenly, her tears still watering the ground.

"You were being stupid," Itachi replied harshly, his voice rumbling with broiling emotion. He never once thought so much insecurity was rolling around in his friend, and it hurt him like a knife in the back to know how little she trusted him. "Why would I think of you as a nuisance simply because you can't use elemental Ninjutsu?" He asked angrily, his fists clenching. "You honestly think I only care about you because we train together?!"

Tsukiko's expression was stunned. "Well I-I just...I thought that you would be annoyed," she said softly. "I thought you would think I was holding you back from your dream."

Itachi sat back on his heels, his eyes filled with a gentle tenderness as all his anger left. He sighed, unable to comprehend how little Tsukiko thought of herself. "You're a part of that dream. We're a team, remember? I won't fight beside anyone but you." And he meant it. The thought of her not being by his side was painful, impossible. She was his partner, and he was hers.

His words seemed to snap the younger girl out of her misery. "Do you—do you really mean that?" She whispered, her lovely black eyes filled with hope.

Ignoring the pink that dusted his cheeks, and the strangely fast beating of his heart, Itachi leaned forward and gently poked her forehead again. "I promise I'll never leave you. We'll always be together."

* * *

Several yards away, Fugaku smiled from his place behind a tree. He had watched the scene carefully, curious to see how his son would react.

' _Mikoto was right. Tsukiko does indeed bring out the best in Itachi.'_

His smile became wistful. He knew that his not adopting Tsukiko was making the girl insecure, but it wasn't his decision. If it had been, she would've been named an Uchiha years ago. Indeed, he truly thought of her as a daughter, and wanted her to be accepted as a full member of the clan.

Itachi's face was red as he helped Tsukiko to her feet, her own face putting fire lilies to shame.

Fugaku sighed with relief. "It seems things are under control for now," he muttered to himself. He watched the two children talk quietly, their hands still entwined.

' _Though everything would be much easier if she could somehow join the—'_

Inspiration struck the older man like lightning, an idea falling perfectly into his brain. He glanced at the children one more time, glanced at their red faces and folded hands. ' _Perhaps….'_

Fugaku smiled again, half-convinced. His idea, which would have to wait several years, had a high probability of succeeding, if the two children remained as close as they were now. All he had to do was tell Mikoto, and ask her advice, for she knew more of these matters than he. He was sure she'd agree, however, for she adored the little girl.

' _Perhaps everything will work out, after all.'_

* * *

Now:

Tsukiko leaned against the fence, watching Anko intimidate the genin. She was explaining that the area inside the fence, where the next exam would be held, was called the Forest of Death.

Only half paying attention, as she was still annoyed with Anko for drawing attention to her, Tsukiko also kept an eye out for the giant snakes that populated the forest. Anything slithering would be taken out with extreme prejudice, just like a certain tree outside the village that had suddenly and mysteriously been hit with lightning a few minutes ago. Her anger was mostly gone, as Anko had, at least, taken away the likely possibility that she would be noticed at every exam and speculated about. By explaining away her presence, she could probably do her job easier.

Naruto's voice, raised in pitch to mock Anko, brought Tsukiko back to the situation just in time to see the older woman graze the young genin's cheek with a kunai.

"Anko!"

Tsukiko's disapproving shout didn't stop her from reappearing behind Naruto, her voice too low to hear as she licked the blood on his cheek.

The younger jounin wrinkled her nose in distaste, walking over to the pair to pull them apart before Anko put a snake in his shirt or something.

Anko's eyes widened briefly and she turned suddenly, another kunai in hand as she felt someone come up behind her.

Tsukiko stopped short a few feet away, a shivery feeling in her back at the sight of a Grass ninja with long black hair and a large straw hat holding Anko's knife with her long tongue that slithered around as it it were alive.

"I was just returning your knife." Her voice, slightly deeper than normal and raspy, made the hair on the back of Tsukiko's neck stand up.

"Why thank you, Grass ninja," Anko said politely, completely unfazed. That is, until the ninja did nothing but stand there, tongue still out. "You know," she continued, smirking dangerously. "I only recommend you stand this close behind me if you wish to reach a premature end." With that, she took the offered kunai.

The Grass ninja pulled her tongue in, her voice losing the raspy quality when she next spoke. "My pardon. With the sight of blood and your blade slicing through my hair...I'm afraid I just became a little excited. I meant you no harm."

"That's enough then," Tsukiko's voice contained a calm authority she didn't entirely feel. "Save your bloodlust for the forest."

The Grass ninja stepped back, her cold dead eyes now focused on Tsukiko. "As you wish, Miss Proctor. Or do you prefer Tsukiko?"

"I don't care," she replied shortly, unnerved by the cadence in the woman's voice when she said her name. Unconsciously, Tsukiko's hand came up to guard her face. "Miss Proctor or Tsukiko- _Sensei_ will be fine."

The ninja smiled, and with a final tongue flick, backed away to rejoin her team.

"Seems like everyone here is quick-tempered," Anko noted. "Must be something in the air." She chuckled. "This is going to be fun."

Tsukiko was unamused. "We should get started." She had a bad feeling, her instincts warning her that, should any trouble break out, it was going to be here.

The two jounin walked back to the fence, and Anko raised her voice to address the gathered genin. "Now, before we begin this test, I have something to hand out to you all." Reaching into her jacket, she pulled out a set of papers. "It's just a standard consent form. Before the test, all of you are going to read over this form and then sign it."

"What for?" Naruto questioned, the cut on his cheek no longer bleeding.

"Some of you may not come back from this test, and I have to get your consent to that risk." Anko laughed. "Otherwise, it would be my responsibility!"

"Umm, but isn't Tsukiko-Sensei here to make sure that doesn't happen?" One of the Sand genin called out over the outbreak of whispering Anko's words caused.

Glaring at Anko out of the corner of her eye, Tsukiko raised her eyebrow in the direction of the voice. "I'm here to make sure everything stays on track. You getting hurt doesn't involve me so long as no one disqualifies themselves, which Anko will explain. Don't expect me to come save you, because I won't. Pass or fail on your own." It was a lie, but a necessary one. Obviously, Tsukiko would do her best to help keep the blood to a minimum, but they certainly didn't need to know that.

"Yup!" Anko clapped the white-haired jounin's shoulder. "You can rest assured though, Tsukiko will probably help retrieve your body before it gets eaten. Probably." She straightened. "Now, I'll explain what you'll be doing on this test." She shoved the consent forms at Naruto. "Here, pass these out. Anyway, the first thing you need to know is that this test will tax every one of your survival skills."

Anko unfurled a map of the enclosed forest. "First, I'll give you all a description of the terrain on the practice field. The Forty-Fourth Battle Training Zone has forty-four locked entrance gates. There are rivers and a forest inside. In the center is a locked tower located ten kilometers from each gate.

"It's in this confined area that you'll undergo the Survival Test." She rolled up the map. "The test consists of an anything goes battle, to get these scrolls." She held up a black one with "Earth" written on it, and a cream-colored scroll with "Heaven" on it.

"Both of them?" Questioned the silver-haired Leaf genin from earlier, pushing his glasses up his nose.

Anko nodded. "Yes, you'll be fighting to get both a Heaven Scroll and an Earth Scroll." There was a long pause as she let them take in the new information. "All together, twenty-eight teams will be taking part in this test. So half of those teams will be going after the Heaven Scroll and the other half will be trying to get the Earth Scroll. I'll hand over one kind of scroll to each team, and that's what you'll be vying for."

"Okay, so how do we pass the test?" Sasuke questioned.

"Your entire squad must bring both scrolls to the tower," Anko replied.

Sakura frowned. "That means at the very best, half of us will fail—more if not every team is able to get both the scrolls."

Anko shrugged, looking unconcerned. "No one ever said it would be easy. Oh, and one more thing. The test has a time limit. You must finish it within five days."

"Five days out there?!" A Leaf genin with long blond hair in a ponytail spoke up, looking shocked.

Beside her, a portly boy in green with a white scarf shouted, "What are we supposed to do for food?!"

"Just look around," Anko grinned. "The forest is full of things to eat, and there's plenty to feed all of you."

"Yeah, but that's not all the forest has plenty of," Glasses said, smiling wryly. "There are man-eating beasts and poisonous plants in there."

"Oh man!" The kid in green shouted.

"Quiet down!" Blondie ordered, glaring at her teammate. "This _is_ called 'survival,' you know!'

The Hyuga boy stepped forward. "That means with those circumstances, there's no way half the teams will pass the tests."

Lee nodded. "With the days getting longer, the nights are getting shorter. So we will have less time to sleep and less time to recover." He smiled, his teeth somehow catching the sun and glinting. "It is a challenge indeed."

"Sleep will be further compromised by the dangers," Midori noted. "We'll have to sleep in shifts to avoid animals and other teams, which will bring down recovery time even more as the days go by."

"Completely surrounded by enemies, there won't be time to rest," Sasuke agreed. "We'll have to keep a constant watch."

"Right," Anko nodded, placing her hands on her hips. "This rest also measures endurance behind enemy lines. This is designed to be a grueling test, and I'm sure some of you won't be up to the challenge."

A bored-looking boy with black hair in a ponytail raised his hand. "So, let's say mid-exam—can we quit?"

"Of course not," Anko scoffed. "In the middle of a battle you can't just say, 'Sorry, I quit.'" She paused a second, then amended her statement with a sarcastic laugh. "Well, I guess you could, but it's probably gonna get you killed."

"Oh just great," the boy muttered, crossing his arms. "This is going to be a drag."

"There are also some ways you can get disqualified." She held up a finger. "The first is simple. If all three members of a team can't make it to the tower with both scrolls after five days." One finger became two. "Number two—if a team loses a member or if a member becomes incapacitated and cannot continue. But most important, none of you, absolutely none of you, may look at the contents of the scrolls until you've reached the tower."

"W-What if it just happens to flop open and you read it," Naruto ventured.

Anko's grin widened, and her laughter was evident in her voice. "Let me put it to you this way, young man. _You don't want to know._

"But, let's just say doing so will leave you at Tsukiko's mercy," Anko thumbed in her direction. "Don't worry, she's pretty good about not killing anyone. Unless, you know, she's ticked off. But she'll be spending the next few days in my company, so I'm pretty sure she'll be in a great mood!"

Tsukiko's face was completely blank, except for a slight furrowing of her eyebrows, and her Gensogan switching colors as if she was irritably trying to pick the best way to attack them. This was enough to incite some slightly panicked whispering from the genin, ensuring that they _would not_ be looking at the scrolls. Even the genin who knew her were hesitant, knowing how seriously she took the rules.

"There are times when a ninja will be asked to carry secret documents," Anko continued. "The scroll rule is to test your integrity." She paused, letting that sink in. "Okay, we're done. Each team, take your consent forms and exchange them over there for your scrolls." She directed their attention to a table with three ninjas seated under a wooden roof with a curtain ready to block which teams get which scrolls. "After that, each team pick a gate, and you'll be let inside. Oh, and I have one more word of advice...Just don't die!"

With that, the teams all split off to sign their forms and strategize.

Tsukiko sighed, already exhausted. 'Five days with Anko and these weird kids.' Her sharp eyes drifted to the Grass ninja from earlier, a sense of unease lingering. ' _Before, I instinctively shielded my eyes, as if sensing the bloodlust from her. Is she really a genin, at her age? It seems unlikely.'_

"Creepy bunch, right?" Anko leaned her elbow on Tsukiko's shoulder, following her gaze. "Hard to believe they're genin."

Tsukiko hummed in response, not entirely satisfied that someone echoed her own thoughts.

"Well, you looked startled, anyway," the older jounin continued cheekily. "You hid it well, but I thought you were going to shoot fire at her after she did that tongue thing." She tilted her head. "I didn't even know Grass genin could do something like that."

The younger girl shrugged, dislodging Anko's elbow. "It reminded me of a snake, or a lizard. You know how I feel about them."

"Too right! The first time I used a snake jutsu in front of you, I thought you were going to blast me instead of the enemy!"

"Still thinking about it," Tsukiko muttered good-naturedly, fighting a smile. As annoying as Anko was, and Kami, she _was_ annoying, Tsukiko couldn't help but like her somehow.

"Oh! Also, there's been a slight change of plans. You're not going to be patrolling the forest, but monitoring from the tower. I was gonna tell you yesterday, but I forgot."

' _I take it back,'_ Tsukiko thought, her eyes twitching. ' _She's just annoying!'_

Sighing, the young woman turned wearily to the older jounin. "And how am I meant to monitor the whole forest from there?"

Anko shrugged. "Not sure. One of Ibiki's sensory teams had an idea and got it approved. You should head over there now, before we begin."

"Alright." Tsukiko turned to jump the fence, pausing only when Anko continued speaking.

"Oh, and Tsukiko? Try not to kill every snake on the way there. We need some to intimidate the kids."

Against her will, the edges of her mouth curled up. "Tell that to them. They live as long as they don't bother me!"

And with that, Tsukiko took off, quickly diving through the trees, trying to stay as close to the treetops as possible to avoid any creatures that would delay her. The forest was peaceful, for the moment, but twenty-eight teams would soon be racing through its depths, stirring up even the creatures that normally preferred to hide away.

A short while later, she was inside the tower, and was led to the highest level by one of the chunin guarding the gates.

The uppermost level was also the smallest, as the tower was tiered like a massive red cake with yellow and white wooden planks for a roof. It was extremely visible, allowing the young genin to find it easily while also using the traditional bright colors of some giant poisonous creature, likely in an attempt to keep the area free of dangerous animals or bugs.

Inside the small room, Tsukiko was greeted by a group of three chunin from Ibiki's force arguing.

"No, I _don't_ know when she'll be here, but I told Anko to let her know!" A young woman in her twenties with short purple hair was yelling, her thick glasses flashing dangerously.

"Well, it's no wonder she's not here!" An older man with closely cropped brown hair and a scar down his cheek growled, practically nose to nose with the woman. "So I say we just get started!"

The final member, a young man with short blond hair and a timid-looking face, was waving his hands frantically. "Guys come on! We have to do something, the test will be starting soon!"

Deciding that she'd help things along, as no one had even noticed her arrival, Tsukiko stepped forward. "Excuse me, I hope I'm not interrupting. I was just informed that—"

A flash of purple crossed her vision, and Tsukiko found herself being hugged by the woman, who was practically shaking with excitement. "You're here! Yes! This is great, now we can get started!"

Startled, Tsukiko looked helplessly at the other two members, amazed that, somehow, she hadn't even sensed the woman moving until she was right in front of her.

"Misora can drop her presence to basically nothing," the scarred man explained, his gravelly voice irritated. "Don't feel bad. She can surprise anyone and loves catching people off-guard."

"That's enough, Takaru!" Misora shouted, pulling away from Tsukiko to glare indignantly. "We don't have time for your nonsense!" She turned back to Tsukiko, immediately smiling. "Ready?"

Still disoriented by the bipolar woman bouncing around, Tsukiko took a second to respond. "Sure, but what exactly are we doing?"

Takaru huffed, crossing his arms. "Yes, what are we doing, Shinto?"

"U-Um," the timid man spoke up. "We're going to try an experiment to see if we can monitor the whole forest. In order to do that, I needed your abilities. You can read chakra, right?" He asked anxiously.

Tsukiko nodded slowly. "When I'm controlling Wind, I can feel the energy of the people around me, but it's not something I've put a lot of training into. I can't tell who they are, just if, at that moment, they are expending a lot of chakra. That doesn't mean I can look at someone and see what they're hiding away."

Shinto waved away her concerns, getting a little more confident. "That's fine. That's Misora's job." He gestured to a machine behind him, a giant blue orb-like structure. "I've been working on a prototype for an invention that will allow sensory-type shinobi to have a wide field of communication and monitoring across the village and beyond. With this, they could find shinobi in trouble on missions and send backup, even if it's in another land. Of course," he continued, deflating slightly. "It's nowhere near done, but I hope to gain some insight from your power combined with Misora's."

"And how will that work?" Tsukiko asked, intrigued by the idea of being able to communicate between other lands without messenger birds.

Misora, unable to stay quiet any longer, cut the young inventor off before he could continue. "You're going to sit in that chair closest to the window." She gestured to a large open window that took up most of the room, allowing the faint breeze to swirl around their heads. "And use your wind power over the entire forest! Then, through you, I'll be able to pick out the exact chakra signatures and locations of the genin, so we can help them if they're in trouble, or if they read their scrolls and are knocked out by the jutsu inside."

Tsukiko held up a hand to halt the babble. "One problem. There's no way I can spread my abilities that far." A couple hundred feet, no problem. A mile in any direction if she was being overly cautious. But over an area of roughly three hundred kilometers, there was no way.

Shinto nodded earnestly. "Of course, that's too much to ask. But Misora will be channeling her chakra through you in order to read what you find, and Takara here, who has quite a lot of chakra, will also be supplying you. He'll trade out with others over the next few days."

Tsukiko bit her lip, thinking it over. "It's possible," she finally said. "And I don't mind trying. It'll be interesting to see how far I can push myself."

"That's the spirit!" Misora cheered. "Sit down and get comfortable! We're going to be here for quite a while."

The white-haired woman sat down on the offered chair, activating her Gensogan. Her eyes turned gold, and she took a deep breath, imagining her chakra like a dome starting from the tower and pushing its way out. Normally, she used this technique to make sure she wasn't being followed, or that she could safely rest for the night without fear of being attacked. Once under the dome of invisible chakra, she could detect if another ninja was nearby. That said, it wasn't completely accurate. As she'd mentioned, she could only sense when chakra was being exerted. Any random ninja could be walking by, not doing anything, and she'd never know.

As suspected it became harder to push the dome out further than a mile. While not especially taxing on her chakra, it felt like she was stretching herself thin. Tsukiko closed her eyes, forcing the dome out further.

Misora placed a hand glowing with chakra on Tsukiko's shoulder, taking a seat next to her.

At her touch, it was like fireflies lighting up in Tsukiko's mind, little blue flames representing the chakras of the people around her. It also helped Tsukiko narrow down what she was looking for. Ignoring anything without a chakra, she expanded even further, using Misora's power to push out to five kilometers.

"Whoa," Misora said, tightening her grip. "I've never sensed so many people at once before! It's easier than I thought it would be. You must have a sensitivity to this kind of thing, Tsukiko. I'll bet you _could_ read chakra signatures if you practiced enough."

"Hmm," Tsukiko replied, not really in the mood to speak. She was already trying to memorize the way Misora's chakra was reading the signatures of the genin, seeing a practical use for such an ability. She doubted she could sense untapped chakra like Misora, but she could probably recognize familiar energies with enough practice.

Behind her, Shinto told Takara to take her other shoulder, and soon she had enough chakra running through her to see the whole forest.

Of course, she wasn't "seeing" anything. In her mind, it was like a vast black map with moving balls of light. If she focused on one, then she could "zoom in" and make out their location on the map Shinto had.

"There," she murmured, finding three rapidly depleting chakras almost immediately, another three nearby.

Misora laughed. "I recognize the three unharmed ones. Lord Third asked me to familiarize myself with the Leaf genin chakras. That's most certainly Kiba Inuzuka, Hinata Hyuga, and Shino Aburame. Looks like they've already taken out one of the teams."

Tsukiko didn't respond, searching for two lone chakras. She found them traveling towards the tower, on a collision course with a set of three chakras.

"Come on, girls…" Wishing her team luck, Tsukiko forced herself to stay professional and keep an eye on everyone.

"There's one person splitting from his group," she reported, drawing Misora's attention. "He's heading for another team. Looks like he may have incapacitated one member."

Misora nodded. "Maybe with a trap or something. That's Naruto Uzumaki's chakra, if I'm not mistaken."

"Naruto?" Tsukiko's closed eyes snapped open for a second. "Then the other two—"

"Sasuke Uchiha and Sakura Haruno," Misora confined. "Looks like they're handling it. Naruto is back with the group and the lone genin is heading back to his."

"Which one is Sasuke?" Tsukiko couldn't stop the question from escaping her, but Misora didn't hesitate.

"The one on the right. He's pretty strong for a genin."

Tsukiko smiled, proud of him. Sasuke was basically her little brother in everything but name, and the chance to familiarize herself with his chakra signature was not something she'd pass up lightly.

Focusing on it, she could immediately tell that his type was Fire, as it was with most Uchihas. It felt like her own Fire chakra, but was a lot stronger than her split one. Other than that, it was hard to describe, but there was just something about it that reminded her of his smiles when he was little. This was undeniably, Sasuke.

That first hour passed quickly, with two more teams incapacitated. By now, Tsukiko was simply letting her senses roam randomly through the chakras, searching for anything that stood out. It was still a surprise, however, when three chakras just vanished.

"Crap," Misora muttered. "Our first fatalities. I couldn't tell what Village they were from." She gave Shinto the location and then refocused. "Those three nearby though, they're definitely Sand ninja."

"Oh?" Tsukiko focused in on the three chakras, all racing toward the tower. She raised an eyebrow. "Already, hmm?"

Takara whistled. "Shinto, tell the guards to get ready. Our first team is returning and I want footage of their appearance, weapons, anything you can find. It would be good to let Anko know as well."

"That's got to be a new record," Misora exclaimed, watching the Sand team closely as they reached the tower door. "What, an hour and forty minutes? Something like that?"

"My clock says an hour and thirty-seven minutes," Shinto promptly replied.

Tsukiko clicked her tongue, unsure whether to be impressed or annoyed. "It's the red-haired kid, isn't it?" She opened her eyes to look out the window, leaning forward slightly to look down at the front gate.

Sure enough, it was the weird Sand kid from earlier, the one she couldn't figure out. Beside him was the puppet kid and a girl with blond hair and a large black rectangle strapped to her back.

Sensing her gaze, the red-haired kid locked eyes with her, scowling menacingly.

A grin spread across her face, and she waved mockingly back, noting the shock on the faces of his teammates. The puppet one said something, and the scary kid broke eye contact, heading into the building.

' _Grumpy one, isn't he?'_ Tsukiko thought, leaning back.

"Urg, that kid gave me the creeps!" Misora said, making sure the dome was still in place. "And did you see? He didn't even have a scratch, or any dirt on his clothes!"

' _Definitely need to watch that one,'_ Tsukiko thought, narrowing her eyes. ' _Of course he might be_ why _the Kazekage is making such a fuss. If this genin from his village destroys any opposition, it'll send a strong message to the other villages, particularly the Leaf. We're allies, but he could use this kid's strength to demand more favorable terms.'_ The Sand was always short on vegetables and the like, being out in the desert, so they had a trade agreement with the Leaf, where such foods were plentiful. In return, the Sand made excellent kunai and other weapons, which benefited the Leaf. If the Sand grew stronger, they could ask for more in return for their goods, threatening to ally with another village. If so, the Kazekage might be bringing all those ninja to protect this one genin and ensure he returns home safely.

That or there will be an attack on the Leaf. Either theory fits, but Tsukiko hoped, for their sake, that it was the former.

"Wow," Shinto said, chuckling quietly. "They're very impressive. I think the previous record was five hours or something."

"Four hours and thirty-seven minutes," Tsukiko corrected, somewhat frostily. "I should know. It's my time."

Shinto flushed, coughing awkwardly. "Oh, my apologies. I've only lived in the Leaf village for a few years. I'm not familiar with a lot of the history."

Tsukiko shrugged. "It's fine. It's good to see that this generation is getting stronger. Although," she paused, feeling the need to defend her title just a little bit. "I was only ten, and on a two-man squad."

"Whoa!" Shinto's timid nature seemed to leave the longer he spent in their company. "That's amazing! Who was your teammate?"

Tsukiko's eyes turned cold, and her friendly manner shut down. "We should get back to work."

"Huh? But—"

The young woman shut her eyes, drowning the scientist out by focusing completely on the flames of chakra that appeared in her mind.

' _This is not the time to be distracted by memories,'_ she thought, scanning for hurt genin. Still, she couldn't help but curse Shinto for once again reminding her that Itachi ruled most of her thoughts.

* * *

A.N. Welp, that's it for this week! I gave you guys a longer chapter of the present because there's going to be a **lot** taking place in the past in the next few chapters.

So, wonder why Tsukiko had such a weird feeling about that Grass Ninja, right? Oh, and Itachi's time was actually five hours and change, but because of Tsukiko, I knocked off an hour.

Also, because I really want to know, do you guys think Tsukiko is a Mary Sue? I had one rather rude anonymous reviewer call her that, but I don't agree. She has to be a match for Itachi, after all, and I think she's worked hard to develop her skills. She has always been chakra sensitive, as you'll see in the upcoming flashbacks, so I don't think her developing a new ability here is an issue. As to her Gensogan, I think this chapter highlights exactly what it takes away from her. There are several rather large limitations to her power, and that's why she and Itachi work so well. They balance each other.

Sorry for the rant, but I do want to know if that what the majority of you think. I want you guys to enjoy this, not rage at my OCs.

See you next Friday!


	10. Chapter 9

A.N. Thank you guys so much for all the support! And love! Nearly twenty hearts just this weekend! Since I'm now over 100 hearts, here's a short chapter to thank you!

* * *

Then:

Six months after starting at the academy.

Itachi and Tsukiko's fame spread throughout the school. They excelled to such an extent that some teachers and students said their level of talent had never before been seen at the school. Given the fact that the first-year classes had nothing to teach the two prodigies, their teachers gave them special homework and tests. But the two easily mastered it all, and the teachers threw up their hands in defeat.

Both Itachi and Tsukiko were more than advanced enough for the genin level, and so, just over four months after them starting school, the teachers unanimously agreed on their graduation after their first year.

The village of Konohagakure, exhausted after the Great War and the attack by the Nine-Tails, urgently needed shinobi. Because of this, a select number of students judged by their teachers to be particularly gifted could take the graduation exam without waiting for their full term to be up. If they passed the exam, they would then attend the graduation ceremony with the older students, and be assigned duties as a genin.

To Tsukiko's delight, the graduation exam was on clone techniques. She and Itachi had been tested separately, and had naturally passed easily. She had produced four regular clones, and even a shadow clone, much to her sensei's astonishment. Shisui had helped them practice with the different techniques Fugaku had taught them until they could perform the jutsus effortlessly.

Now, they were to graduate in a mere six months time.

* * *

Tsukiko walked down the noisy school halls quickly, Itachi beside her. She was anxious to get training, and finish perfecting a new Fire technique.

Of all the elements, Fire was both her favorite, and the most dangerous. It was unforgiving, and a single misstep could end in painful burns. But the feeling of power it gave Tsukiko, the feeling that she could control so dangerous an element, was exhilarating.

Fire wasn't stubborn like Earth, or flighty like Wind, which was by far the easiest to master. It was like a living creature that needed to be trained, a heartbeat that became an extension of the user. And it was the most intimate of elements, the only one Tsukiko created from her own energy. To her, the heat of the fire and strength of the attack was a reflection of her own will. There was nothing like it.

But she'd had to learn to wield it properly, which was easier said than done. Over the course of a week, she'd tried to imitate the Fireball Jutsu by forcing chakra out of her throat, and had burned her lips almost immediately. Luckily, she could control the heat fairly well, and hadn't been too badly hurt. The experience had taught her that fire created from a jutsu was different than the fire from her Gensogan.

Basically, the jutsu involved mixing equal chakra with air to produce flame. However much chakra was used, twice as much flame was produced. The Gensogan, on the other hand, needed only enough chakra to produce a flame, then used hardly any as fuel. The difference was subtle, but important. By trying to force a large amount of chakra out of her mouth, she was creating a massive flame she couldn't control. Instead, she simply needed to take a deep breath and blow a small but steady stream of air that became fire the instant it left her mouth, due to the chakra she directed across her lips. It was rather like blowing a bubble with gum, only more...explosive.

Once that was mastered, she immediately began to work on other techniques. She was currently trying to create a whip of fire, and had the burns on her hands to prove it.

Her other goal was to create new ways of working with Itachi. He had no problem with the Fireball Jutsu, and she was attempting to control whatever fire he created. That way, he could blow fire at an enemy, and she could have it follow them if they dodged. It was easier to control fire already created, but chakra fire was different. She needed to take control of it by exerting her will over Itachi's. When he cast the jutsu, he chose the direction the fire would go, and her forcing it to change was an exercise in both will and subtle control. She was getting faster at it, though, and both children were pleased with the current results.

After Tsukiko's breakdown, she'd been a little shy around Fugaku and Itachi, but they acted like it never happened, except to be more encouraging. Indeed, Fugaku took the time to mention how impressed he was with her understanding of the Gensogan, and to compliment their teamwork. Tsukiko had nearly glowed with pride at his kind words. Itachi, on the other hand, was more subtle. Whenever she hurt herself, he was instantly there, and if she began to feel insecure, he would immediately poke her forehead, reminding her to banish "stupid thoughts."

Now, she was far more confident in her abilities. Yes, she couldn't do normal jutsus, but she didn't have to. Itachi could do them, and she could strengthen his jutsus with her Gensogan. If anything, their teamwork had improved even more due to her inability. If they were the same, it was pointless to team up. But since they could enhance the attacks of the other, they were frightening to behold.

But they could always be better, which was why Tsukiko was as impatient as Itachi to leave school that day. She was forced to wait, however, for the swirling, clamoring masses of the other students to leave the halls, their excited chatter filling her ears. Normally, people cleared out of their way, awed by the two soon-to-be-ninjas, but the pull of the weekend was strong, and everyone wanted to go home.

"Hey! You two!"

Tsukiko stopped walking and looked over her shoulder, curious to see if she and Itachi were the targets of the hostile voice.

"You them? Itachi Uchiha and Tsukiko Amaya?"

Three boys, likely from the school's senior class, based on their height, stood in the hallway behind them. The one in the middle was obviously the leader, as he was the loudest and most scary looking. He had spiked blond hair with narrow eyes and a small nose. His physique was quite muscular for his age, which was no doubt the reason he had his large arms crossed threateningly. His voice, for it was him who had so rudely called out to them, was rough and deep in a strange way, as if he were lowering it purposefully to be more intimidating.

The other two boys weren't as muscular, but no less of a threat. The brunette boy on the leader's left was the tallest of the three, with sharp eyes and a wicked grin. Tsukiko dubbed him "Tall Boy," in her mind, as it seemed appropriate.

As for the boy on "Leader's" right, he seemed jumpy, almost as if nervous to prove himself. He had short, dark blue hair and was immediate named "Droopy Eyes," by Tsukiko, who quickly noticed the rather obvious characteristic.

Itachi instinctively took a step closer to the boys, making himself a closer target than Tsukiko. He didn't like the look of the older students, and sensed a coming conflict. He oriented himself as the main threat, subtly moving until Tsukiko was behind him. This wasn't due to his believing she would get hurt, but a mix of their training and his instinctual protection of the girl. He attacked first, and she watched his back and waited for the moment to strike.

The bullies seemed smug, and rightly so, based on first appearances. The average age of graduation was twelve or thirteen, making the short physiques of both younger children, both only seven, laughable. They had to crane their necks to meet the leader's eyes.

"You know who we are?" Leader challenged.

"No," Itachi answered bluntly.

After Shisui's advice, he had memorized the names and faces of his own classmates, but couldn't be bothered to go beyond that. Yes, they were the ones he was protecting, but he didn't need to know their whole life story.

Even Tsukiko had only learned the identities of the students in their own grade.

At Itachi's blunt response, Leader furrowed his brow. "Cheeky brat, just like everyone says, huh?" He paused to straighten his back and puff out his chest. "I'm Tenma Izumo. Fleet Foot Tenma, they call me. Ain't nobody at this school who don't know me."

' _Never heard of you_ ,' rose up in Tsukiko's throat, but she swallowed the words, hoping to avoid a confrontation, and merely looked up at this Tenma with curious eyes.

"You wanna fight?" Droopy Eyes asked, clearly hoping to gain attention. His gaze fixed on Itachi, not seeing her as a threat

"Slow it down, Katsura," Tenma instructed, and Katsura threw him an ingratiating smile, obviously itching to lash out at the younger students.

"You know why we stopped you?" Tall Boy asked imperiously, his right eyebrow shooting up.

"No idea," Tsukiko responded lightly, her own eyebrow raising.

"What's with these kids?!" Tall Boy hissed, stepping forward aggressively.

At his movement, Tsukiko's hand was instantly at her back, her movement blocked by Itachi's body.

"Hold up, Hagiri." Tenma held him back, and Tsukiko relaxed her hand slightly. "We're gonna make sure we teach these kids about school manners. Just don't rush it."

Hagiri nodded reluctantly, glaring at Tsukiko. The pitiful anger he directed at her had no effect, and she met his gaze coolly, smiling slightly in contempt.

Scowling, Tenma slowly took a step forward to stand before Itachi, his manner extruding self-importance. "You know hierarchy is important in the ninja world, right?"

"With the four-person cell as the basis for ninja duties, the orders of superior jounin and chunin ninja are absolute. Thus, decorum and seniority are the foundation for ninja," Itachi recited, his bored tone giving no hint to the tension Tsukiko could see in his shoulders.

"Just like an honor student to have a memorized answer. But…" A malicious look came over Tenma's face. "I can't stand that attitude of yours." He came closer until Tsukiko could practically feel his breath over Itachi's shoulder, and glared at them. "You're both thorns in my side."

"You're really going there?" Hagiri muttered, as if amazed at Tenma. But his voice clearly contained a sneer.

The halls were close to deserted at this point, the students leaving in a hurry when the bullies had arrived. All the teachers were either in the Teacher's Room or on their way home. Boosted by a sense of superiority, knowing no one was going to get in his way, Tenma's mouth stretched out in a mean grin.

The "cheeky brats" before him were younger students after all. And Tenma had almost certainly decided that before this encounter began that Itachi would cry and apologize, if they threatened him a bit. No doubt he had made countless classmates and younger students obey him like this. Tsukiko could see clearly that they didn't care about her, likely thinking she would cry at the slightest insult. She was a girl, after all, and this boy wasn't the least ashamed of threatening students five years his junior. The dim arrogance of their natures bled out onto the faces of all three bullies.

Alone, it wouldn't take either Itachi or Tsukiko three minutes to beat down these fools. Together...less than one.

Tsukiko narrowed her eyes in anger. ' _They called us cheeky, but really, they just want us to yield.'_

They wanted to make the supposed school prodigies cry and beg for mercy, and stroke their own vanity. So why didn't they act like real ninja, and attack the moment they called out to stop them?

This was no ordinary school. This was a training ground for ninja. The thought of killing no sooner flashed through the mind, then was carried out. Wasn't that the way of the shinobi? To strike quickly and mercilessly, cloaked in anonymity?

These older students had never experienced death. Their arrogance made that very clear. If they had truly experienced the suffering of death, they would have never started this confrontation with petty insults. They didn't understand that the institution of school was protecting them, allowing them to act as they were. In reality, they were open on all sides.

Tsukiko had kunai hidden on her back. And quite fortunately, she had three of them there. Itachi was also equipped with three kunai, making it unnecessary for them to even take a step. At any moment, they might simply reach behind them to extract the knives before letting them fly through the air. Just like the practice figures, the knives would find themselves embedded between the eyes of the three bullies, and Tenma and the others would fall.

But...she didn't want to kill them. Tsukiko had learned that a ninja's decision to end a life was in the same moment the movement occurred. That neither she nor Itachi had taken so much as a step forward meant the bullies' claim to life was secure. But even so, she didn't want to risk a fight either, for Itachi's sake.

He was a very gentle and kind soul, even if he didn't realize it. Any blood he spilled would stay with him, buried in his subconscious to spring out and wound him. She had noticed this, during training. Any time he had accidentally wounded her, a look of deep horror would flash across his face, and he would be plagued that night with horrendous dreams. She had awoken several times to hear him calling for her in his sleep, his face contorted with pain.

All she could do in those moments was gently move herself and baby Sasuke closer to him, taking Itachi's hand and holding it tight. Sasuke would happily sleep pressed between his two siblings, and Tsukiko would lean forward and whisper soothingly that she was there, that she was alright, that he was safe. His face would slowly relax, and his breathing would become even as she snuggled closer to him. In the early morning hours, she would move back to her futon, not wanting to embarrass Itachi if Mikoto took another photo.

And so all confrontations were handled delicately, either ending with no fight at all, or a friendly sparring match with a teacher present. Never had they been cornered in an empty hall before, and the thought of a upcoming fight was clearly causing the tension in his frame.

' _He's afraid.'_

Not of losing or getting hurt. Such a thing was preposterous. Itachi, despite all his dreams of strength, never wanted to fight a single person, if he could avoid it. The reason why was simple. He didn't know if he had the crucial restraint necessary for a common fight. The restraint needed to avoid accidentally killing a classmate.

The thought of unnecessarily taking someone's life haunted Itachi, consciously or not, which explained his distance with people. To know them, their hopes and dreams, feelings and desires, and then to see them fall during a battle or mission would be excruciating. And if they should fall by his own hand...he would surely go mad.

That's why Tsukiko was safe to become attached to. She was just as strong as he was, just as invulnerable. No matter what, she would live.

And those hidden fears of Itachi, the things she'd discovered on nights when the nightmares were so bad that he called for help in his sleep, had become precious to her. Above all else, Itachi would never be the one to kill. She would take that upon herself, and spare the older boy the agony of becoming death. Yes, she was afraid as well, but she had already been in a position where, if she didn't fight, she would've died. She knew what it felt like, to attack with the intent to kill. And for Itachi, she would do it a thousand times over.

Itachi always attacked first...but she was the killing blow.

"It was you guys who set the Nine-Tails on the village, right?"

Tenma's angry, mocking words snapped her out of her dark thoughts and brought her back to the situation at hand.

Her heart beat faster as she took in exactly what he said, anger stirring.

"All the grownups say so, you know—that the Uchiha clan made the Nine-Tails attack the village," The boy continued, obviously trying to goad one of the younger children to violence. "You're a sneaky, cunning clan, so we'll never catch who did it, right? But it was definitely an Uchiha. The fact that the Hokage and them don't trust you is proof. I mean, they made you all go live together, at the edge of the village."

"I don't know anything about that," Itachi said quietly, his face still expressionless.

Tenma sneered. "You think you can just say, 'I don't know,' and be done with it?" The furrow between his brows grew deeper. "My uncle died when the Nine-Tails attacked us. His dad did, too." Tenma pointed to Katsura, still standing behind him, then turned to Hagiri, who continued to glare at Itachi. "And you'd things go for your family again?"

"Right in front of me, my mom...she was trying to protect my little sister from debris that came flying, and…" Hagiri faltered, his face briefly contorting with horror.

Tsukiko remembered that night, remembered protecting Mikoto and Sasuke. She remembered the terror and determination she'd felt, and how she'd mustered everything she'd had to bend Earth to her will.

' _Did you stand by, unable to do anything, as your mother died?'_ She wanted to ask the brunette, feeling a sense of pity. ' _You have to get stronger, so you can protect the ones you love.'_

"The Uchiha clan is our enemy. I mean, you're our enemy. You killed our relatives. How could we not hate you?" Tenma demanded.

Sour understanding hit Tsukiko's throat, and the rush of anger she felt was enough for her to intervene, stepping forward to break formation. Any sorrow she had felt on the bullies part vanished, suddenly replaced with a reminder of the faults of human nature.

"First, false charges," she said, her voice sounding strangely bitter, even to herself. "A claim that a clan caused an attack with no proof other than speculation."

' _A baby born with strange eyes will destroy the village.'_

Four heads turned to her, and Tsukiko saw Itachi's hand twitch backwards, a gesture for her to remember their positions. She only dimly registered this, however, as she continued, her vision clouding over.

"Next comes a broad interpretation. 'The Uchiha clan in its entirety is responsible.' Never mind that the Uchihas saved dozens of lives by leading the evacuation and protecting the shelters, losing many of our own in the process."

She took another step forward, now level with Itachi, her shoulder brushing against his.

' _Never mind that the family was nothing but helpful to the village, but was mistreated anyway.'_

"Finally," She said, glaring at the bullies. "An unprovoked attack occurs, and the origins of a war are thus created."

' _A family is sold to another ninja, and slaughtered.'_

A person wants to bury, somehow, the sense of loss they feel after losing someone they love. This feeling, a feeling they don't know how to vent, snatches away their power of judgement and runs wild. And then they hurt someone.

With each word that left Tsukiko's mouth, dripping with bitter experience and the agony of loss, Tenma and his cronies seemed to understand that the little girl in front of them had seen things they couldn't comprehend, and they couldn't help but feel intimidated. But the knowledge that someone so young knew more than them only infuriated them further, and the experience they had gained bullying younger students gave them confidence.

"What do you know?!" Katsura hissed, narrowing his droopy eyes. "You're just some girl they took in. I'll bet those stuck-up Uchihas don't even want you around! They just did it to curry favor with the Hokage."

Tsukiko swallowed hard, forcing her anger to be wiped from her face. "I am just as much an Uchiha as Itachi," She said, her heart feeling heavier and heavier with each word.

"Then apologize!" Tenma demanded, leaning back. He pointed to the empty space between himself and Tsukiko, and shouted. "If you're an Uchiha, apologize for them! Get down on your hands and knees and say, 'I'm sorry on behalf of the entire Uchiha clan!'"

"She will not," Itachi said dispassionately, bringing attention back to him. "And neither will I."

The looks on the faces of the older students changed at once. Flushed with fierce emotion up to that point, they now suddenly paled. The superficial impulse to threaten the cheeky first-year students, and maybe vent some of the helplessness they felt at the loss of their families in the Nine-Tails attack, changed in that moment to resentment toward Itachi himself.

"Y-You…"

All three reached around to their backs, where they each grabbed hold of kunai hilts.

Itachi's arm shot out and pulled Tsukiko behind him, where she should've been the whole time. Her temper had landed them in a far worse situation than any he'd dealt with, and he felt a fleeting fear for the older students, wondering if he was capable of holding back enough for them to remain relatively unharmed. They had hurt Tsukiko. Anger at their words became a noose around his throat, and Itachi focused on calming down. If he attacked in fury, he was no better than them, and they would be seriously wounded.

Despite his irritation towards Tsukiko for her stupidly egging them on, he couldn't help but feel grateful that she'd stood up for him. Lately, it seemed as if more and more people thought his clan was to blame for the attack, so much so that he had begun to wonder why Tsukiko even wanted to be an Uchiha anymore. It would be all too easy to escape any blame, yet she insisted on being just as hated as he.

Which led to this.

Itachi stared at the older students, his own arms hanging limply at his sides. If it came to a fight, he intended to get through this with a substitution technique that made use of cloning.

His substitution technique was unconventional. Normally, the ninja switched out their own body for a log with a tag attached immediately before an attack, in order to confuse their opponent. But rather than a log, Itachi's version used countless crows.

He had come up with the idea while training with Shisui, and saw a flock of crows flying in the dense woods. If you used the usual log, the confusion effect on your opponent was meager. But the instant you switched out for crows, they flew off in all directions, leaving your opponent surprised and bewildered, and generating an opening that wasn't even in the same level as with the log. Tsukiko had praised him endlessly for the idea, adding it to her technique as well.

This was the first time they'd had a chance to test it in an actual fight.

' _Will it work...?'_

He planned to activate the jutsu when one of the three thrust a kunai into his body, and slowly curled his fingers into a fist, a nonverbal cue to Tsukiko to get her Gensogan ready.

All five students took shallow breaths, the air thick enough to be cut. A tense silence rolled down the hallway as Tenma and his group watched any move Itachi or Tsukiko made, and vice versa.

"Last chance," Tenma growled. "Apologize."

"No."

Tsukiko answered before he could, her voice strong and confident, ready for Itachi's signal to strike.

Tenma glared at her. "Fine. Then you'll-" The expression on his face changed suddenly, flickering through surprise and then fear.

"H-Hey, look at that!" Katsura put a hand on his leader's shoulder and pointed at Tsukiko's face, outstretched arm shaking slightly.

"Her eyes are changing colors," Hagiri muttered, his face showing his own fear. "She's a freak! She's going to curse us or something!" He stepped back, blocking his eyes for for fear of being cursed.

"L-Let's get out of here!" Tenma ordered quickly, his sense of self-preservation kicking in, and the three students leapt in the air as if catapulted, vanishing.

Silence echoed through the empty halls, the once tense atmosphere deflating just as quickly as Tenma's group. As tough as they were, they were still children, and the sight of something unexpected was enough to shatter their confidence.

Itachi blinked at the spot where three bullies had been not a full second ago, then turned to Tsukiko, raising an eyebrow. "That was...unexpected."

Tsukiko returned his confused look, her eyes still flickering rapidly through the elements. "Are my eyes that frightening?" She asked, grinning in amusement, unable to suppress the laughter that suddenly bubbles up in her throat.

He shrugged. "Who knows? I'm used to it, but it could definitely be startling to someone who has never seen them spin. A handy trick for scaring off weaker opponents."

The young girl shook her head, her body shaking with mirth. "You would think of it that way! Wow, I didn't expect this! I thought we'd beat them in under a minute, but I never imagined it would take four seconds!"

Itachi slowly smiled, and watched her with a gentle expression. In spite of all the pressure on her, and all the hatred being directed at her by his clan and the rest of the village, she could still smile and laugh without a care in the world.

' _I want to protect her smile.'_

The thought came suddenly to the young boy, who immediately felt his face warm slightly. Where did that come from? He didn't need to protect her; she was more than capable. And yet…he couldn't deny the warm feeling in his chest as she turned a playful gaze to him.

"Itachi! Let's go train! Last one there has to clean the dishes tonight!"

"Very well."

…

...

"No fair! Itachi! I didn't say go yet, so get back here!"

* * *

Now:

Another two hours passed, and Tsukiko quickly became adept at finding the chakras that stood out. By not focusing on one in particular, and letting her eyes drift, it was easy to spot changes.

So, when one chakra flared up all of a sudden, quickly doubling in size, Tsukiko immediately located it. There, near a group of three, one of which was also rising, perhaps preparing an attack or caught in a trap. That chakra rejoined its comrades, who were clearly being attacked by the strong one.

Brushing the weaker ones, Tsukiko nearly jumped up. "That's Sasuke's group!"

Takara, silent unless spoken to, heard the worry in her voice. "Is he okay?"

"We don't know," Misora replied, her grip on Tsukiko's shoulder tightening. "Focus on the bigger chakra. There's no way a genin is that strong. Most jounin don't have flares like that. What you can see is just the tip of the iceberg. Something's wrong."

Tsukiko immediately focused on it, touching the chakra as she had with Sasuke.

Instantly, she was overwhelmed with the feeling of something wicked, a slithering down her spine and a paralysis like she was caught in the hypnotic gaze of a serpent. It was vaguely familiar, like a distant memory, and her hands once again shot up to protect her eyes.

This instinctual movement, coupled with the feeling of being gripped by tight scales, triggered a memory, an image of a pale face framed by dark hair, golden eyes glimmering dangerously.

"Quickly!" Tsukiko opened her eyes and glared furiously at Shinto, her mind racing with the possible implications of _him_ showing up here. "Get someone to tell Anko where their location is, and inform them that Sasuke Uchiha, Naruto Uzumaki, and Sakura Haruno are being attacked by former Sannin, Orochimaru."

Misora and Takara jerked back in surprise, breaking the connection and destroying the dome around the forest. The purple-haired woman gaped at her. "B-But how can you possibly know it's him? You can't read chakra signatures…"

"Tell Anko that he's disguised as a Grass ninja, the one from earlier," Tsukiko barked at one of the chunin sent to relay messages. "She'll understand."

"Yes ma'am!" The chunin leapt out the window, darting away through the trees. As he sped off, another ninja passed him, coming back through the open window.

"Urgent report from Anko," he said, landing in the room. "The bodies of three Grass shinobi were found with their faces melted off in the woods near the village edge. Anko believes it to be the work of—"

"Orochimaru, yes," Tsukiko interrupted, her voice cold and clipped. "We've located his whereabouts and have sent word back to Anko. He's attacking a group of genin. Follow that messenger and see to it that he gets back to Anko with the map."

Stunned, the older man simply turned and left, hoping to catch up to his companion before he went the wrong way.

Tsukiko, meanwhile, was in full commander mode, trying to keep a rising sense of panic at bay. ' _I'd better cover all the bases. No sense taking chances when it comes to Orochimaru.'_

"You," she pointed at a female chunin. "Inform the Third Hokage of this, as well as the actions we've taken. You," she gestured to another. "See to it that all of the paperwork of all the entrees is in order, and that there are no other spies hidden in the ranks. Report back if you find anything off with _anyone's_ paperwork, Leaf or not."

Turning to another pair, she continued reeling off orders, her tone suggesting that the first person to argue with her would get a facefull of lightning. "One of you alert Anbu Black Ops of Orochimaru's presence and find out why the bodies weren't discovered sooner. The other, go find Kakashi Hatake and get him here as soon as possible, letting him know that his team has been attacked."

Wordlessly, her orders were obeyed. Turning back to her two companions, she pointed to the three chairs they'd previously occupied. "You two, we need to get communications back up. I need to know how Sasuke's team is, and what that snake is doing."

Misora finally found her voice. "But, how did you recognize—"

"Call it a gut feeling," she replied shortly. "I've met the guy once or twice, and he's not exactly someone you forget."

Orochimaru had deserted the village a few months after the Fourth Hokage had been appointed, when it was discovered that he had kidnapped around sixty children to experiment on in his pursuit of forbidden jutsu.

Right after he left, Tsukiko had, in spite of the Uchiha clan's dislike, been closely guarded. Knowing that her eyes were incredibly rare, there was a chance that Orochimaru would make a last-ditch attempt to steal her away for his experiments. The thought of someone under their care being taken, a child no less, was more than enough to rally the close-knit group around Fugaku and his children.

Tsukiko and Itachi had heard some of the adults discussing it, and the thought that the "scary snake man" was coming to steal her eyes not only heightened her fear of the slithering creatures, but also gave her nightmares for weeks. Even now, her subconscious automatically went to shield her eyes, recognizing the threat even when her conscious didn't.

Turning to the open window, Tsukiko felt every instinct she had screaming at her to go to Sasuke herself and get him out of that forest. But there was another factor she still had to consider.

"Shinto," Tsukiko's voice was resigned. "Is there anyone else who can 'see' like I can? Anyone who could temporarily take over?"

He shook his head sympathetically. "You know there isn't. If you leave now, we'll be blind."

She ran over her options. Either provide reconnaissance to Anko and the Anbu or race off to protect Sasuke herself. Her instincts said Sasuke, but her mind, and several years of missions, said logic.

Sighing heavily, Tsukiko rubbed her temples. ' _It boils down to this. Can I defeat Orochimaru?'_

No. She couldn't. Given his experience and arsenal of forbidden jutsu, that had only strengthened over the years, she would likely only be able to keep him at bay. As painful as it was, staying here was her best option. If she raced off, he could easily get away by simply hiding his chakra or taking another face. If she stayed, she could track him.

"Fine." She sat back in her chair, beginning to work on reforming the dome. Takara and Misora wordlessly took their places, their chakra coursing through her the moment they touched her shoulder.

Instantly, Tsukiko could tell something was wrong. Orochimaru's chakra had risen even higher, and something strange was happening to one of the other ones.

Unlike the blue of all the others, this one was orange at the bottom, the color bleeding into the normal chakra. The flame was also fluctuating, rising and falling rapidly as a new chakra took hold.

Tsukiko didn't need to touch it to tell what was happening. The ominous feeling of evil, even stronger than Orochimaru's, was also familiar.

"That's Naruto's chakra," Misora murmured, not needing to say more. The Nine-Tails was trying to release it's own massive stores of energy, perhaps sensing that its host was in danger.

After a few tense minutes, the chakra faltered, and it looked like Sasuke had intervened, regaining Orochimaru's attention.

Impatiently, Tsukiko looked for Anko's team, and found a group steadily making their way to the snake's location. They would be there in a few minutes.

Sasuke's chakra flared, then fell dramatically, snapping her attention back to him. Brushing against it, her eyes snapped open at the feeling of Orochimaru's presence.

"Looks like he gave Sasuke some of his chakra somehow," Misora muttered, answering her unspoken question. "It's not exactly his though. This chakra is strange, almost parasitic. It's trying to overwhelm the boy."

Orochimaru's flame suddenly began to move away from the kids, perpendicular to Anko's group. As if sensing a change, Anko's chakra broke away and went to cut him off.

"Will Anko be okay?" Misora asked, following her chakra closely as the two collided and began to fight. "Fighting her former sensei?"

Tsukiko nodded. "She has more reason than most to hate him, and aside from another Sannin or Lord Third, she knows him best. I can't say she'll win, but she might learn what he's after."

Though her words were calm, her insides were boiling. Unwittingly, she'd been put in a situation where she was unable to help Sasuke. His chakra was nowhere near low enough to send a team to retrieve him, which was a relief, but he was likely hurt. Naruto hasn't moved in a while, so it was likely the same case, even though his chakra had stabilized.

"Anko's hurt!" Misora's gasp called her attention back to the fight. Orochimaru's chakra was fading away, as if he'd been killed, which was impossible. He was likely using a forbidden jutsu to hide himself, leaving a wounded Anko to fend for herself.

Her flame was pulsing with the same parasitic energy as Sasuke as she slowly made her way back to the Anbu team. They rushed to meet her, and all three chakras headed towards the tower.

Tsukiko cursed, her eyes frantically searching for Orochimaru. How did he know? Could he have guessed from how fast Anko found him, or was he just paranoid? At any rate, he was gone, Sasuke was hurt, and her staying and not going to him was completely pointless. She'd failed to keep track of the enemy, misjudged the situation, and failed to protect Sasuke.

"Tsukiko, the Third Hokage has just arrived and requires your presence." A nameless Anbu shinobi landed lightly on the ground behind her, having come through the window. "Kakashi Hatake is here as well. Both are anxious to know what's going on."

Obediently, the young woman stood, brushing her white hair back. "Of course," she answered, her eyes returning to their normal black. Anger at her own stupidity made her voice clipped and cold. She should have gone with her instincts. She and Anko together might've had a chance...

"Are you going to pull Sasuke from the exam?" Takara asked, crossing his arms. "You're his guardian, aren't you? If Orochimaru's done something to him, it might be better if he quits now."

She paused, her face shadowed. "Misora, did he look like he was in danger of dying?"

"No ma'am!" The older woman replied cheekily. "His chakra was moving around like crazy, but it wasn't slipping below danger levels. He'll be fine if they can get to the tower quickly."

"Then he stays." Tsukiko started walking, following the Anbu. "That kid would never forgive me if I pulled him from the exams like this. He knows his limits, and he wants to improve as a shinobi. This is nothing to him." She looked over her shoulder, smiling gently. "He's an Uchiha, after all."

* * *

A.N. There we go! I'll see you guys on Friday! Thanks again! Please tell me what you think, and if you have any questions, I'd be happy to answer them!


	11. Chapter 10

A.N. Happy Memorial Day weekend!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto, Naruto Shippuden, or the Itachi books. This is just a tribute to my favorite character in a wonderful story!

Please leave a review!

* * *

Now:

"A curse mark?!" Tsukiko repeated incredulously, anger coiling tightly in her stomach as she watched Anko clutch her neck, grimacing in pain.

She, Anko, a few chunin, and the Third Hokage were all in one of the private monitoring rooms, a few days after the run-in with Orochimaru. After Tsukiko's initial report to him, the Hokage stayed at the tower to help search through the applications. Orochimaru had told Anko that some of his followers were taking the exam, and the Hokage wanted to figure out who they were.

There had been no luck so far, and Tsukiko had watched the forest for the rest of the five-day limit, keeping an eye on Sasuke and her own team. Chiyo and Midori had finished on the third day, and Sasuke's team had just barely made it, after a long series of conflicts. They were lucky though, as an extra fourth ninja had allied with them and helped the kids find their way to the tower.

Now, she'd been called back in as the Special Proctor, as well as Sasuke's guardian, to be advised on how the third exam would run. She'd also learned that Orochimaru had apparently given Sasuke a curse mark of some kind, which explained the way his chakra had been behaving the last few days. Anko had barely been able to stand when she'd been brought in, and the Hokage had to care for her himself. Now, a few days later, she was much improved.

Anko was seated on one of the blue couches with Tsukiko standing beside her. The Third Hokage stood by the monitors, facing them, while the other shinobi in the room stood back respectfully.

Lord Third nodded gravely, watching Anko closely. "Does the curse mark still cause you pain?"

"No, not really," she answered, taking a deep breath. "Thanks to you, it's much better."

"That's good but we'd better get back to business," a chunin with long spiky black hair and a white cloth over his nose spoke up. "This Orochimaru is one of the Sannin, the Legendary Three Ninja, isn't he? He's supposed to be so incredibly powerful that not even the Anbu Black Ops Unit could bring him down." He shook his head. "I'd heard a rumor that he'd died, but I guess that wasn't true."

The other chunin, a man with long brown hair that covered his left eye, stepped forward. "Why did he come to this village now, anyway? To attack a group of genin?"

"But Sasuke Uchiha isn't exactly a normal genin," Tsukiko said, her eyes narrowed warningly. "Anko, you said that he told you something about Sasuke being his successor? What exactly _is_ this curse mark?"

Anko trades glances with the Hokage, who nodded. "I'm not entirely sure," she admitted. "It gives you chakra when you're weak, but it feeds on you and tries to take over in return. It's incredibly painful once it starts spreading, but we can subdue it and seal it away. After that, it'll only act up when Orochimaru wants it to hurt. The mark is his way of controlling people, while testing their abilities and how their power increases while it's activated."

Tsukiko's jaw tightened, and her fists clenched. "I see," she said coldly, already forming a plan to hunt down the snake. She had a feeling her fear would be rather muted the next time she saw him.

The two monitors in front of her came to life, and a man appeared on the screen. "Anko, we've confirmed that twenty-five ninja have finished the second exam. Seven teams of three members, and two teams of two. One of these was an additional team of three, but one of their members was severely wounded and is unable to continue. She was conscious and walked to the tower on her own though, so we allowed her teammates to move on. As for the third exam, according to the rules, we'll have to hold a round of preliminaries—the first time in five years." Message delivered, the monitor switched off.

The Third Hokage pulled his pipe out of his mouth, frowning pensively. "Now, for the time being, we'll just continue with the exams as planned. But I also want to keep an eye on Sasuke." He turned to Tsukiko. "You will continue to act as my Special Proctor, with specific orders to protect the genin. Kakashi will also be helping to watch over Sasuke."

"Yes, sir."

His gaze softened. "Don't worry, Tsukiko. He'll be safe."

She nodded, a look of determination on her features. "Yes. He will be."

* * *

Then:

The man tossed the white files on his desk and looked at the subordinate standing before him, wearing a white tiger mask. Red shading stretched out to the sides from around the eyeholes, slanted upward as if expressing anger.

"Itachi Uchiha and Tsukiko Amaya, hm…"

The photos attached to the open files showed the faces of a young boy and a young girl. The two sets of eyes that stared back at the man, however, contained a strength and knowledge that belied their owners' ages.

"All involved assert that the academy has never seen such genius. Both completed their graduation exam four months after they commenced their studies and are scheduled to graduate in the springtime of the next year. Furthermore, the girl is well in control of the Gensogan, despite having received no formal training."

His gaze still on the files, the man listened to the excessive formality of his subordinate, and a smile crossed his lips. "I can just see the different departments fighting to get them."

The subordinate nodded. "Yes, sir. And after a request issued by Fugaku Uchiha, the Third Hokage has decided that the two will not be separated. They are to be partnered."

The man's visible eye narrowed, the other covered by bandages. "How strange. Why was this decided?"

"Fugaku Uchiha insisted that their teamwork was even better than their original skills, and the Third Hokage personally visited the school to witness a sparring match between the two children and some of the upperclassmen. After seeing them fight, Lord Third granted the request."

"They were that impressive?"

"In under three minutes, they defeated three teams of other graduating students."

The bandaged man lifted his weary hips from the chair. As the shadow behind the Third Hokage, he had carried the burden of the village's darkness, but recently, he felt bitterly the weight of his own body. He wasn't so old that he knew death was upon him, but he was of an age to start thinking of his own life and the length of it.

Ten years from now, twenty years from now...he would certainly die. And there was something he had to do before that happened. Cutting out the root of the evil that had been growing since the birth of the village of Konohagakure was his life's work.

"A pair of prodigies too young to have been colored by anything…"

He turned his gaze to the darkness visible beyond the window. The black void had fallen deathly silent, as if devouring the fleeting peace. For men who lived in times of war, the night, with its swirling air of murder, was something yearned for.

"Well, let's meet them first, hm?"

"As you wish, Lord Danzo."

* * *

"Although the Great War is over, we cannot yet say that the world is now totally at peace," Tsukiko read, her voice strong and clear. "Even now, there are those who struggle through difficult days because of the sad incident of two years past. So how do we break this down? As young shinobi, this isn't someone else's problem. Today, we take our first step on the path of the ninja."

Carefully, she passed the scroll to Itachi, unable to keep a small smile from her face as she caught Mikoto's eye, and received a wink from the older woman.

Both children were standing on a raised platform, addressing a large crowd of people who watched with a mixture of pride, fascination, and disconcertment. Present were graduates, current students, parents, guardians, teachers, and even the Third Hokage himself.

Tsukiko was dressed in the dark blue colors of the Uchiha clan, her kunoichi outfit brand-new for the occasion. She wore the Uchiha symbol proudly, pleased to see Fugaku's nod of approval and Mikoto's happy exclamations at her attire. Her white hair, which normally hung two or three inches past her shoulders, was now in a complicated braid with a pin that pulled her bangs to the side, showing the silver headband that graced her forehead. Tsukiko felt very grown up, and made sure that her practiced section of their speech went without a hitch.

Beside her, Itachi was also formally dressed in a dark blue shinobi outfit that complimented his pale skin and dark eyes. He too had a gleaming silver headband that he wore with pride, despite his near-expressionless face. After carefully taking the scroll from Tsukiko, he spoke in a sonorous voice.

"In this chaotic world, it is certainly not a peaceful path," he read, continuing from where Tsukiko left off. "But despite this, we vow it here. Ninja are precisely those who dare to advance down a difficult path. Ninja are those who push forward and endure. Using everything we have learned at the academy, we will fulfill our duties as ninja of Konoha."

Itachi slowly rolled the scroll back up, and Tsukiko counted to three in her head.

' _One. Two. Three.'_

At the same moment, Tsukiko and Itachi bowed low to the crowd before them, and the Third Hokage gestured to them proudly.

"Valedictorians, Amaya Tsukiko and Uchiha Itachi."

Their grades had been nothing but perfect from the day they started school until their graduation. And although there had been some exceptional graduates during the days of the Great War, such as Kakashi Hatake, Tsukiko and Itachi were the youngest post-war graduates and co-valedictorians.

And thus, the curtain fell on their school days.

And yet, conflict continued to arise. There had apparently been all kinds of quarreling among the teachers about Itachi and Tsukiko reading the formal reply as the valedictorians.

The majority of the graduates were twelve years old. There were some who, like the two young children, had managed excellent grades and were graduating early, but at seven, Itachi and Tsukiko were indeed far too young. Even if they did have the grades, the thinking, and the ninja skills far beyond their seven years, there was concern that they were simply too immature to hold up before the other graduates.

And there was one more thing.

There were many complaints about their families.

In Itachi's case, his being an Uchiha was an issue, due to the continued suspicion over the Nine-Tails attack. These complaints came mainly from teachers with lineages connected to the Senju clan, an old rival of the Uchihas.

For Tsukiko, the problem was that she was an outsider who had been brought to the village in a time of war. Mutterings had already begun that her skills were due to the fact that she had been trained as an enemy spy, and had invaded the village. When she had initially heard these rumours, she couldn't even be angry. The idea was so stupid to her, that a four-year-old with murdered parents had been brought to the village as a spy, that all she could do was give a short bitter laugh of acknowledgement. This, coupled with her allying herself with a powerful Uchiha, despite not being a part of the family, was worrisome to some of the other clans. After all, the Amaya clan had once been feared for their powerful ocular jutsu, which, at the time of the village's creation, rivaled Hyuga clan's Byakugan and posed a threat to the Sharingan.

In the end, however, all those who opposed bowed before the children's overwhelming abilities and grades, and the way they excelled in all things, despite the issue of age and prejudice. There could be no other valedictorian, and so it was decided to reward them equally.

As they walked off the stage, and the crowd began to disperse, Tsukiko smiled contently. At last, they were on their way to becoming the strongest ninja ever.

She watched Itachi walk in front of her, his strides purposefully taking him in the direction of his family. Feeling suddenly mischievous, she nudged his shoulder with her own.

"So, how does it feel to be the second youngest valedictorian in Konoha's history?"

Immediately, Itachi stopped, his sense of competition rising. "Someone else graduated sooner?"

Tsukiko could see the wheels turning in his mind as he scanned the crowd, as if another young, brilliant ninja would appear.

"Yup," she said happily, flipping her braid over her shoulder. "Me."

Itachi turned on her with unamused eyes. "We're the same age," he said flatly.

"No," Tsukiko said, giggling evilly. "You're two months older than me, so I'm the youngest valedictorian!" She struck a pose. "Sorry, Itachi, but I win!"

He raised an eyebrow, unable to hide his smirk. "Our youngest valedictorian is quite childish."

She pouted, puffing up her cheeks. "You're mean, Itachi! I'll tell on you to Sasuke if you don't stop!" It had become a game of hers to tell baby Sasuke whenever she thought Itachi was being mean to her. Sasuke would always look at Itachi with narrowed eyes, as if to warn him off. Tsukiko found it absolutely hilarious, and so did Itachi, who had a hard time not laughing at his disapproving baby brother.

Of course, the reverse was also true. Itachi could tell on her and she'd be treated to Sasuke's grumpy expression the rest of the afternoon. But it was far more common for Itachi to tease her than the reverse, so it was usually the older boy in trouble with Sasuke.

He chuckled, and held his hands up in surrender. "Fine, I apologize! I don't need Sasuke glaring at me all day."

"Very well," Tsukiko said haughtily. "I accept your apology." She glanced around. "Have you seen your parents?"

"Over there," Itachi pointed, taking her hand and tugging her toward his target as sakura blossoms fluttered through the air around them.

Standing patiently in front of him were three people. His father, mouth pulled down at the corners despite the felicitous nature of the occasion. His mother, smiling gently to greet them from his father's side. And his baby brother, whose recent mastery of his ability to walk delighted him to no end.

His family, completed with Tsukiko at his side, her hand still intertwined with his.

Spotting his big brother and adoptive big sister in the throngs of people coming and going, Sasuke opened his adorably round eyes wide. "Itaaa!" he cried in a clear voice. "Kikooo!"

Their mother told him to call his big brother "Itachi" and his sister "Tsukiko," but he still couldn't talk properly, so that turned into "Ita" and "Kiko." And seeing his little brother calling out so happily and tottering toward him, Itachi felt an overwhelming feeling of affection.

' _He adores me unconditionally.'_

And as his older brother, Itachi had to protect Sasuke unconditionally. His hand tightened around Tsukiko's and she squeezed his hand back reassuringly. They didn't need words to communicate their feelings of pride and protectiveness that surged as the younger boy slowly made his way to them.

His mother followed along behind the baby and his tottering steps and bright smile, hands outstretched to catch him.

Tsukiko let go of Itachi's hand to crouch on the ground, stretching her arms to the stumbling toddler. "Come on, Sasuke! You can do it!"

"Kiko!" He called back delightedly, speeding up his steps. Sasuke nearly stumbled, but caught himself and kept going, his smile wide.

"Be careful, Sasuke," Itachi said calmly, smiling at his brother's happy face. And then Sasuke disappeared from his field of view.

Someone stood between them, blocking his line of sight. A man...a dark man. Itachi couldn't exactly put into words just what was dark about this man, but the aura surrounding him, the grim look on his face, and his very presence brought a dark void to mind.

"Are you Itachi Uchiha?" the man asked looking down on him. The right side of his face was covered by bandages. He was clad in black, but his arm from his left shoulder was exposed, revealing the white robe he wore underneath. His left eye alone glared at Itachi.

"I am."

The man's eye flicked to Tsukiko. "And you are Tsukiko Amaya?"

She slowly raised herself off the ground, her face devoid of emotion as she met the man's gaze unflinchingly.

"Yes."

"I see…" The man's sinister aura seemed to intensify as he studied the two. Behind him, Itachi's mother grabbed the shoulders of Sasuke, as the baby attempted to continue to reach Tsukiko.

"You are the bearer of bad luck," the man said suddenly.

"Bad luck?" Itachi questioned.

"They call chaos, those lines," the man said, pointing at the lines running from Itachi's eyes down to his cheeks. "Chaos will follow you throughout your life."

' _The stain of a single drop falling on a clear day.'_

Who exactly was this man?

"I have a question for the two most talented geniuses ever to grace the halls of the academy."

Itachi and Tsukiko waited silently for the man to continue.

"One of our own betrays us, stealing village secrets," he said, directing his question to Tsukiko. "You've known this person all your life, and they come to you for aid when they are wounded during the theft. If you help them, they will escape with the information about the village. What do you do?"

Tsukiko's expression never changed, and her words came with no hesitation. "Capture them for questioning, if possible. If not, kill them and recover the village's secrets."

The man smirked, his gaze calculating. "A proper answer indeed." He turned to Itachi. "Ten of our brethren have been shipwrecked. One of them has caught a nasty, infectious disease. If he is allowed to live, the other nine will also get sick and die. If you were the captain of that ship, what judgement would you hand down?"

The question of why the man would ask something like that when they were meeting for the first time flitted through his mind. But in the same instant, he was offering a response, his own thoughts in simple words.

"No matter what happens, the one who is sick is destined to die. If I were the captain, I would think that my first priority would be to save the lives of the other nine. I would choose to kill the one and save the nine."

A bold smile crossed the man's face. "Another proper response." He moved toward the children. "I look forward to the day we meet again," he said in a near whisper as he passed Itachi.

Itachi felt the malicious echo sully his heart with darkness.

' _That man is to be closely watched.'_

Instinctively seeking a comforting warmth, he took Tsukiko's hand in his own, her troubled gaze meeting his silently.

"Itachi...Tsukiko…" His mother came racing over, Sasuke in her arms. "Are you both alright?"

"What did he say?" his father demanded concernedly, having come chasing after his mother at some point.

Itachi's eyes met Tsukiko's for a moment, searching for a response to his father's question. She blinked once.

"Nothing important."

"Oh, really?" his father asked, turning his eyes on the man's departing back.

"Who is he?" Tsukiko ventured carefully.

"Danzo Shimura. He's a close aide of the Third." A dark shadow lurked in Fugaku's voice as he answered her.

" _Chaos will follow you throughout your life."_

The words Danzo left lingering in the air became sharp thorns and pierced Itachi's heart.

Placing a hand on his aching chest, and feeling Tsukiko press her shoulder against his, Itachi stared at the man's back as he walked away, until he disappeared.

* * *

Now:

Tsukiko stood next to Anko, another three ninjas on her right. Across from her stood Ibiki, with four more ninjas at his side. In between them, on a slightly raised platform, was the Hokage. Behind him were the nine senseis of the nine teams that had advanced. Four of those nine were the rookie Leaf genin, and six of the nine were Leaf teams. The other three were from the Sand, Sound, and Rain.

Masuko grinned at her from her spot in line, her canine glinting. She'd been thrilled to be the "official" sensei of their team, and seemed to enjoy glowering at the short Rain ninja next to her, who looked decidedly uncomfortable being next to someone so obviously ready for a fight.

Finally, all twenty five genin were lined up before them, waiting to hear the Hokage's speech before the preliminary round could begin.

Anko, armed with a small microphone headset, spoke first. "First of all, congratulations on finishing the second exam!" Her expression was honestly surprised, like she didn't quite believe it.

Tsukiko understood. Usually only three or four teams passed, so this was quite impressive. At Anko's words, several of the genin began speaking quietly, likely checking who else had passed.

Behind her, she heard Guy trying to pick a fight with Kakashi, Masuko egging him on.

'Great,' she sighed mentally, watching her purple-haired friend get Guy riled up. 'They've met.' Kakashi was ignoring the both of them, seemingly zoning out.

Eyes gliding over the genin, Tsukiko noticed several things. Firstly, Sasuke, though scratched and dirty, seemed to be in decent enough shape. He caught her eye and smiled confidently. She nodded, although if he thought she wasn't going to grill him on what happened, he had another thing coming!

Secondly, her girls.

Chiyo was grinning at Masuko, her spirits high. Her normal purple jacket and pants were torn and bloody, revealing the white shirt she wore underneath. Her already messy hair looked like a bird's nest, her two short braids tangled in her thick black hair. Seeing Tsukiko, she almost waved, but caught herself at the last second and settled for a wide smile.

Behind her, Midori was a little more solemn, though she did smile at both Masuko and Tsukiko. Her dark green shirt was covered in mud, and her black pants had a large hole in the knee. Still, she looked slightly better than Chiyo, her golden hair splattered with mud, but still in its usual ponytail. Her green eyes were shining with pride, and she held herself a little taller.

'Good,' Tsukiko thought fondly, smiling back. 'She's gained a little confidence. If nothing else comes out of this, she'll have at least learned to trust her instincts.'

The final thing she noticed was the red-haired Sand ninja. He stood next to Chiyo, a complete opposite to her happy and excited aura. And like Misora had noticed, not a scratch on him. His clothes weren't even dirty, which was at least true of his teammates. But no, he stood staring straight ahead, not even acknowledging his sensei.

That is until Chiyo said something, possibly congratulating him. Then his gaze flicked to her, murderous aura rising.

Chiyo's grin widened, and held her hands up in mock surrender saying something else. The Sand genin's gaze lingered on her for a long moment before switching to Tsukiko, obviously recognizing her. At Tsukiko's answering wink, his glare deepened before returning to whatever he'd been looking at previously, offering nothing but silence.

The dark-haired girl covered her mouth to muffle her laughter, looking at Tsukiko with wide, mirthful eyes as if sharing a private joke.

She returned Chiyo's smile, but her mind wandered, wondering how Chiyo could act so carefree around someone so angry. In Tsukiko's case, she'd had a lot of experience reading the usually expressionless Itachi, so the whole "I'm a brooding killer" schtick didn't affect her in the slightest. What experience did Chiyo have?

Again, the uneasy feeling that not everything was okay with Chiyo's homelife reared its ugly head. She and Masuko had both broached the subject carefully, but Chiyo had denied any such suspicion easily, saying she was just under a lot of pressure. Meeting her parents, Tsukiko didn't see any outward signs of them being abusive, but her instincts told her something else was going on.

Movement from Sasuke grabbing his collarbone distracted her, and she frowned as he grimaced in pain.

"Alright, now pay attention!" Anko called, having given them enough time to accept that they'd passed. "Lord Hokage is going to explain the third exam to you. You better listen carefully, maggots," she added dangerously, giving no sign that she'd been in great pain only a few hours ago. Turning to the old man, she bowed her head respectfully. "Lord Hokage, they're all yours."

He nodded before stepping forward to the edge of the step and clearing his throat, unlit pipe hanging from his lips. "First, before I tell you what the third exam entails, I want to explain something about the test itself. Listen closely now, it's something that all of you need to understand." He paused, making sure everyone's attention was focused solely on him and his words. "I'm going to tell you the true purpose of these exams.

"Why do you suppose our country holds these exams in conjunction with our allies?" He questioned. "It's to raise the ability levels of the shinobi and increase friendship between allied nations to be sure, but it's important that you understand it's true meaning. The exams are, so to speak…" He trailed off, glancing at the Sand genin before taking his pipe out of his mouth. "They're a representation of the battle between allied nations."

Lord Third's words made several pairs of eyes widen, especially the rookie genin who were suddenly understanding the weight of the exam.

"Now, if we look at our history, all the countries that we're currently allied with were once neighboring nations that continuously fought with each other for power. In order to avoid destroying each other's military strength meaninglessly, those nations picked champions to do battle on behalf of their country, on a mutually selected location. That was how the Chunin Selection Exams originally began."

To no one's surprise, Naruto interrupted.

"Well, uh, that's great, but why do we have to go through with these exams, then? I mean, it's not like we're doing this to pick chunin to go fight."

"Well, actually," the Hokage corrected, smiling wryly. "There is no question that part of the point of these exams is to select shinobi worthy of becoming chunin. That's just not the whole story. These exams also allow for a place where shinobi can carry the price of their nation on their backs, and fight against other ninja for their very lives." His gaze hardened.

"Many leaders and people of prominence from various countries are invited to attend this exam as guests and also possibly to seek shinobi to work for them. This exam could determine the course of your ninja work from here on out. And more importantly, those rulers will watch your battles and take note of the strengths that each ninja and each nation is developing. If there is a gap in power between the countries, the strong nations are inundated with job requests for their ninja. And conversely, the requests to countries that are deemed weak, decline. Therefore, the stronger our nation is, the better our position when it comes to negotiating with neighboring countries. So it's important to show how much military strength our village has."

Tsukiko's eyes focused on the Sand jounin among the other senseis, searching for any reaction to the Hokage's words. She had already told the old man of her theory, and he seemed to think it a logical one, no doubt why he arranged this little speech.

The Inuzuka boy, with his dog stuffed inside his jacket, was the next to speak. "Okay, but even so, why is it necessary for _us_ to risk our lives?"

A fair question, and one the Hokage was expecting.

"The country's strength is the village's strength," he intoned. "The village's strength is the shinobi's strength. And the true strength of the shinobi is only achieved when it's pushed to its limits, such as in a life or death battle." The Third Hokage pierced the genin with a hard look. "This exam is a chance for each nation to display the strength of its shinobi, and hence, the strength of the nation itself. It's _because_ this is an exam where your life is on the line, that it has meaning. And it's for this very reason and for the strength of the nation that your forerunners fought in this exam. It's truly a dream worth striving for."

Now a girl wearing a Chinese-style tunic with her hair in buns, interrupted. "But then why did you use the expression, 'friendship,' before?"

"You've only remembered half of what I said," the Hokage rebuked. "You also mustn't have the wrong idea of the exam's meaning. This is a custom in which balance is preserved by fighting and dying. In the world of the shinobi, that _is_ friendship. The third exam is a fight for life with the pride of your village and your own dreams at stake."

The Hokage's words sent a shiver down Tsukiko's spine, reminding her of her own dream. To be the strongest, the greatest of all the ninja and to end war. When had that dream been forgotten? When did she give up on it?

The answer of course, was obvious. _That night_ , the one that changed everything. But...just because she had put everything aside to raise Sasuke, just because she was without the one person she trusted the most, did that mean her dream had ended before it even truly began?

' _No,'_ she decided, her fists clenching. ' _It doesn't end here.'_ Sasuke was old enough to take care of himself, old enough to risk his life for his village. Now, she could throw herself back into her training with that same intensity she'd had as a child, guiding her team to become stronger than they'd imagined. She didn't need Itachi, she had a team now, a new family in Sasuke, Masuko, Chiyo, and Midori.

' _I'll show you, Itachi,'_ she promised. ' _From now on, it's going to be **you** chasing after **me**.'_

* * *

Then:

"Starting today, you four will be working under me as genin. Some of our missions will be tough. So you need to rely on each other, and make it out alive together!" the man in his forties shouted loudly, his headband tied so tightly, it looked painful.

Yuki Minazuki. He had been assigned to be the jounin supervisor for Itachi, Tsukiko, and two other graduates. In contrast to his lyrical name, he had a burnished face, and beneath the headband digging into the short dark hair on his head were eyebrows like old, used brooms. The eyes that sat below the unkempt brows were like a fish's, the nostrils were large, and although the man's lips were quite thick, his mouth was absurdly small.

They were seated on stone benches in the park, where the ridiculous man in front of them began his spiel.

Itachi felt his mouth quirk as he felt Tsukiko's disappointment. She had been looking forward to having what she called a "heroic sensei," someone who could teach them better maneuvers and tactics. Needless to say, this man did not fit the part.

Not that it mattered. The only thing Itachi cared about was that both he and Tsukiko were placed on the same team. The identities of their sensei and other teammates meant little to him, although it was interesting to note that they were on a five-man squad instead of the usual four. But, the number of graduated students was not divisible by three, meaning that there were either one or two teams of five, or teams with less than four, which was unacceptable.

"Rely on each other. As if," the genin next to Itachi muttered, too quiet for Yuki to hear.

' _Although, had I been able to choose my teammates, I would not have chosen him.'_

Tenma Izumo. The leader of the group that had tried to force Tsukiko and Itachi to their knees and apologize, back at the academy. While Yuki continued his superficial lecture, Tenma sat holding his knees, alternating between glares at Itachi and wary glances toward a smiling Tsukiko.

"We got the village albatross and cursed girl hanging around the neck of this team. To hell with teamwork."

The other genin, a girl, was sitting on the other side of Tenma, with short, spiky brown hair and defiant green eyes. "Look, you, could you just shut yer yap already?!" She shouted, interrupting Yuki's lecture. Her name was Shinko, and she was the same age as Tenma. "Ever since school, you've been yammerin' about Itachi on and on and on. But you're a genin now, yeah? So just quit with all yer whining already!"

"Shut up!" Tenma shot back. "You're just a girl. And you know, this has been bugging me since we were at school—your accent's so messed up, you stop making sense halfway through a sentence!"

"I only moved house to Konoha three years afore. I kin't help it!" Shinko yelled, pursing her lips.

"Would you both stop it, please?" Yuki timidly tried to calm the bickering pair, but they simply glared at each other, and gave no sign of stopping.

Itachi felt Tsukiko lean against him, a habit she developed when she was tired, of either training or of people. "What a lively team," she muttered, just loud enough for him to hear. "A sensei with no authority, a loud girl with a temper, and a former bully who was terrified of my Gensogan. No problems here, I'm sure."

The corners of his mouth turned up, and he nodded. "We would've been more than adequate with just the two of us."

"Girls are always nice to good-looking guys, anyway!"

Tsukiko's body shook with smothered giggles, and Itachi felt himself turn slightly pink.

' _What a sad argument.'_

"Wh-Why would I be all up in here for Itachi like that? Looky you, the lad's only seven! I'm thirteen, hear? I def don't fancy him!"

"Age doesn't matter when it comes to love, right?"

"Wh-What are you talking about! I don't fancy him! Tsukiko's the one draped all over him, so ask her!"

Instantly, Tsukiko's head shot up from the spot on his shoulder, her face turning red. "Please don't get me involved in a stupid conversation," she snapped.

Itachi cocked his head, confused at her response. The discussion was indeed a waste of time, so why did she react so harshly?

Yuki waved his hands at the four of them frantically. "Stop fighting! We're a team!"

Tenma and Shinko glanced at their sensei, before immediately shouting at each other again.

"Haah." The three of them were so pathetic that Itachi couldn't help the unconscious sigh that slipped out.

Naturally finding fault with this, Tenma raged. "What're you all exasperated for?!"

' _I can't spend time with these people…'_

Itachi stood up, eyes closed.

"You jerk! You running away?!"

"Itachi, go on and give this arse a piece of it! You too Tsukiko!"

Ignoring them, Itachi looked at Yuki. "I was told that today was just a meet-and-greet?"

"R-Right." Yuki was clearly the most concerned about Itachi and Tsukiko, the youngest members on the team.

"So then, haven't we finished what we came here for?"

"I-I suppose we have."

"Then Tsukiko and I will take our leave."

Yuki nodded slowly. "Alright. We have our first formal mission tomorrow, so please make sure you're both on time."

About to walk away, Itachi stopped and looked at Yuki over his shoulder. "I understand."

Tsukiko bowed politely. "Yes, Yuki-Sensei. We'll be there."

"You're just running away, jerks!" Tenma shouted, standing up.

"An' I'm not done with my talking yet!" Shinko grabbed onto the hem of Tenma's trousers, pulling the boy to the ground.

"What are you doing?!"

"Yer such a loudmouth!"

The sound of their bickering in his ears, Itachi didn't turn around again. He could tell this wouldn't be easy.

* * *

Tsukiko threw her hands up in frustration. "It's just not working today!"

Itachi laughed at her expression, distracted from his Fireball practice by her outburst. "You're not focusing," he noted, watching the movement of the water critically.

She huffed, blowing her white bangs out of her eyes. The stubborn strands refused to stay in a ponytail. ' _My hair's getting long.'_

"I know, Itachi," she sighed, allowing the water to fall out of the sky. She had been attempting to freeze the water into kunai-like projectiles and aim them at targets placed randomly by Itachi. Normally, she could do it quite easily, but as Itachi said, she wasn't able to concentrate. Water was a flowing element that relied on change. In order to force it to freeze instantly, or change directions, she needed to have very precise chakra control.

"I just...I'm worried," she admitted, flopping flat on the ground resignedly. "About our team. We seem to be saddled with the most useless people imaginable. How are we supposed to improve? It will be the academy all over again." Tsukiko looked up at the sky, frowning in thought.

"Perhaps," Itachi agreed, laying next to her, his own eyes watching the clouds lazily float by. "But we will at least be out on missions, able to test our abilities to some new extent."

' _Someone's acting all high and mighty today.'_

"Don't act so patient!" Tsukiko teased, glancing at the older boy. "When those two started fighting, I thought your eyes were going to roll so far back you'd see your own brain." Just the image of him looking so exasperated would keep her amused for weeks.

"Oh?" he questioned, tilting his head in her direction. "And what made you so upset that you had to join in their fight?"

Heat bloomed on Tsukiko's face and she determinedly stared upward, finding relief in a cool breeze that washed over her. In truth, she wasn't sure why she had reacted the way she did. All she knew was that when Shinko had implied that she was in love with Itachi, she had immediately lashed out, not wanting Itachi to hear. But why? She didn't like Itachi that way...did she? He was almost her brother!

"I..don't know," she responded truthfully, unable to think of anything else to say. She felt like her heart was aching, and couldn't help but clutch at her shirt. "I just...I felt like I was embarrassing you."

"Hmm," he replied, seeming somehow disappointed. "I see." He was quiet for a moment, his face thoughtful.

Tsukiko dug her fingers into the rich soil underneath her, frustrated that she couldn't properly explain exactly what she had felt. The smell of the forest calmed her, as did the feeling of being connected to the earth. Connections, bonds, were very important, and her bond with Itachi was the most precious thing in the world to her. She wouldn't risk it.

"It doesn't bother me," he said finally, startling Tsukiko out of her thoughts.

Curiously, she looked back at him, surprised to see him watching her intently, a faint line of pink on his cheeks. "What?"

"I don't like it when other people touch me," he continued, his onyx eyes never leaving hers. "Especially in public. But...it doesn't bother me when you do it. I'm used to you laying your head on my shoulder, or holding my hand. I don't want you to stop doing that simply because you think it will embarrass me."

Tsukiko nodded slowly, a shy grin creeping back onto her red face. Confidence filled her, and an impulsive thought hit her. She quickly leaned in toward the older boy and kissed his cheek. "Thank you, Itachi."

Itachi's eyes grew wide in surprise, and his mouth opened slightly, no words coming out.

The younger girl leapt up from her spot, giggling at the stupefied look on his face. "I'm going for a run," she said swiftly, too scared to see if he would get angry. The wind blew her long hair back as her legs began to pump, pulling her away from her partner. Her heart was racing, and happiness exploded through her chest.

' _What is this feeling?'_

* * *

A.N. Can you feel the feels? We're starting to get into some actual romance here! *gasps dramatically* And my least favorite character of the ENTIRE series makes an appearance. Honestly, Danzo's the Umbridge of Naruto! The only ones I hate almost as much are Zetsu and Kaguya for being stupid and ruining one of the best anime villains. Oh, well. And yes, I did create a two-man Rain team for the soul purpose of getting their butts kicked by Chiyo and Midori. I have no shame about it.

Now to answer a few of the most popular questions I receive. I answered directly to the people who asked, but I thought you guys would also like to know. Here's my favorite five!

 **"When does Tsukiko get lightning?"**

—Patience people! It'll happen! It's an evolution of her eye, because to me, (even though the show treats it like a normal element) Lightning is a combination of other elements and is really advanced.

 **"What's the deal with Orochimaru? Is he going to be one of Tsukiko's main villains?"**

—Yes and no. See, my own feelings about that guy are pretty weird. When he first showed up, I thought he was the creepiest creeper to ever creep, and as I was 11 when I started reading Naruto, he freaked me out. But somewhere along the way, I really started to like him. I don't know when it happened. All I know is that when he showed up again in the Ninja War, I was SUPER excited! And then weirded out, and confused as to when I started looking forward to him. Now, he's one of my favorites, and I adore Mitsuki in Boruto. So, Orochimaru is one of the characters that I find enjoyable to write about, because he's just so darn creepy, and fully realizes it! So, Tsukiko is going to have an interesting time with that guy.

 **"Will Tsukiko join the Akatsuki?"**

—This one is probably my most popular. All I can say is that, as much as Tsukiko loves Itachi, she feels immensely betrayed by him. There's a fair bit that hasn't been disclosed about their interactions "that night" and some of it is going to directly conflict with flashbacks. You'll see what I mean. I will say that meeting him again will be difficult, in more ways than one.

 **The questions boiled down to: "Gensogan. Why and how?"**

—I'm really glad I got this one. See, when I started writing down qualities for Tsukiko, I wanted her to be a match for Itachi. Specifically, I wanted her to be able to somewhat counter the Sharingan. So, giving her something uncopyable, like a kekkei genkai, seemed obvious. But then I thought about Genjutsu, and specifically how you break it. It's mentioned over and over that "breaking" a Genjutsu requires pain or being able to break your chakra flow. Ok, so how could my character do that easier than others? Oh! I'll giver her several clashing chakras, with the ability to switch between them. This switch to different chakras will break most Genjutsu. (Basic level. Not like, say, Tsukiyomi, or Mangekyo stuff that can only be broken by Uchihas of the same blood...just an example…) From there, it was no jump to use the chakra types or "elements" (AKA Gensogan—Element Eye) and incorporate some moves from my favorite tv show, Avatar.

 **"Will Chiyo, Masuko, and Midori get their own stories?"**

—I mentioned this possibility, and a lot of you guys seem to like it! Masuko probably won't get her own, as she's so closely tied to Tsukiko, but I do plan on having some chapters in her perspective further down the line. As for the other two, yes, I plan on it. Their stories will touch this one, and vice versa. Anyone who reads this will learn their love stories just as anyone reading theirs will learn about Tsukiko. Basically, when I started reading Naruto, I had huge crushes on two specific characters. And, when Itachi showed up, I thought he was super cool, but I hated him. I have a little brother and sister, so as an older sibling, I thought he was awful. Then, as I got older, I fell out of the series for before Shippuden, only picking it up when I was 16. And holy crap did I cry when I found out about his past! And he became my favorite character. Now, the other two guys I liked still remain some of my favorites to this day, and I thought they deserved a little attention as well! Chiyo's should be pretty obvious right now, what with her expressing a desire to **travel between other villages** and such, but Midori is a shy one, so we haven't seen much of her. That will change.

Anyway, thanks so much for all the love! If you have any more questions, comments, or even ideas on what you'd like to see, I'd love to hear it! I know the basic outline of how this ends, but any fluffy flashback moments, specific fights you want to see (Tsukiko VS ?, Masuko VS ?, etc.) or moments in the series you want brought out. I'm basically skimming through the chunin fights, but some get more attention than others, and any iconic fights (you know the one) will definitely get more time.

Have a fantastic weekend and I'll see you guys next Friday!


	12. Chapter 11

A.N. Thank you so much to everyone who reviews! I go back and read them like twenty times a day! You guys really don't understand how much it means to me. Anyway, there's another long author's note at the bottom, because you guys seemed to enjoy seeing where my thoughts were headed.

* * *

Now:

The Hokage's thunderous words had touched quite a few of the young genin, several of which were now grinning cockily, no doubt excited by the chance to prove themselves as the old man had said.

Naruto crossed his arms. "Well, he sure convinced me!"

"Any test is fine," a raspy voice announced. Tsukiko's eyes widened in mild surprise at the red-haired Sand genin.

' _He sounds like he's not used to talking much...or maybe it's from breathing in too much sand.'_

Chiyo jumped slightly, her surprised exclamation carrying to Tsukiko's sharp ears. "He speaks!"

Her mocking was ignored. "Just tell me what the details of the exam are already," the Sand genin ordered. "I can handle anything you throw at me."

The Hokage nodded firmly, clenching a fist as his own excitement began to show. "Very well then! Now listen closely, I'm going to tell you exactly what you will all be doing on the third exam."

At that same moment, however, a ninja dropped from above, kneeling in front of the old man. "Lord Hokage, before you do, please allow me, Hayate Gekko, appointed as proctor of the third exam, to speak first."

"So be it," the Hokage allowed, no sign of the rather sudden appearance startling him.

Hayate was a well-respected, if unassuming, jounin with a rather persistent cough. He wore the standard jounin outfit, his hair tied back with a bandana that let his bangs rest in the center of his face. His illness evidently affected his sleep, as there were large bags under his eyes.

"It's nice to meet you all," he said politely, standing up and turning to face the genin. "There's something I would like all of you to do before the third exam." His words were punctuated by loud coughs that racked his frame, despite his covering his mouth to muffle them.

"We have to have a preliminary exam before we can move on to the real one," he finally said, regaining speech.

It went over as well as could be expected. Several voices cried out angrily, and Hayate put up a hand to quiet the noise.

"Uh, well, you see," he said slowly, trying to appease the angry genin. "The first and second exams might have been too easy. The fact is, we never expected so many of you to still be here. According to the rules of the Chunin Exams, a preliminary round can be held at any stage in order to reduce the number of candidates remaining."

"B-But—" Sakura looked worriedly at the proctor. "Is that fair?"

"It's just that at this stage, we have to speed things up a bit," Hayate explained. "As Lord Hokage said, a lot of important guests will be watching. We can't afford to waste their time. They've come to see only the best." He paused, then sheepishly asked. "So if there are any of you who feel you're not in top physical condition, now's your chance to"—he broke off in a fit of coughing—"Sorry. But if any of you don't feel up to this, now's the time for you to bow out. The preliminaries will be starting immediately."

Tsukiko's eyes widened slightly. ' _Harsh,'_ she grinned, seeing several faces go from cocky to nervous. Even Chiyo looked put-out. And she didn't blame them. They had just finished surviving for five days in the wilderness, and now they would be tested again.

"The winners will be determined by one-on-one combat," Hayate explained. "So like I said, anyone who doesn't want to fight, raise your hand." He turned away, giving them a few minutes to decide.

' _This will be difficult with an odd number,'_ Tsukiko mused. ' _Someone's going to have to fight twice for their spot.'_

Sasuke's hand shot to the curse mark again, and his head bowed slightly as he fought the pain. Tsukiko watched him closely. Sakura said something to him, her eyes tearing up. She was clearly pleading with him, and from the stubborn look on his face, he wasn't giving in.

A subtle movement from the Hokage summoned Tsukiko to his side, along with Anko and Ibiki. "It's just as I feared," he said in a low voice, nodding to Sasuke. "The boy is suffering."

"What do we do with him?" Ibiki asked, a slight softening of his fierce face the only sign of sympathy.

"We take him out of the exam, hand him over to Black Ops, and let them keep him locked up," Anko said shortly.

Tsukiko's eyes instantly bled red, and she glared at Anko warningly. "Watch yourself, Anko. No one is locking Sasuke up anywhere."

"We have to keep that mark under control," she countered unflinchingly.

"Oh, and he's just going to quietly go along with all of this, huh?"

Tsukiko had never been so happy to see Kakashi. The older man stood next to her, smiling mockingly from under his mask. "You really think so? You're forgetting, he's of the Uchiha clan."

"I don't care what the heck he is!" Anko's harsh exclamation was just barely quiet enough that the whole village didn't hear it. "If he stays, he's a danger to everyone. Don't you see?! As he gets stronger, so does the curse mark! That thing is feeding off his chakra!" She clutched at her own mark, so disturbingly reminiscent of the Sharingan. "It's a forbidden jutsu that devours the one who bears it." She looked back at Sasuke, raw emotion in her voice. "It's incredible the kid's still standing. By now, he should be dead."

Tsukiko felt her own anger rise. "He's stronger than you think! Your mark is sealed, and we can do the same to him. If Sasuke doesn't want to quit, then he should be allowed to continue!"

"Lord Hokage!" Anko said beseechingly, obviously biased by her own experiences.

Anything he might have said was cut off by a hand being raised in the air.

Tsukiko's eyes widened in surprise. It was the silver-haired boy from earlier. The one who'd been attacked by the Sound ninja.

"Okay, you got me," he said, smiling with embarrassment. "I'm out."

Hayate stared at him for a long moment, then shuffled through papers on his clipboard. "Kabuto Yakushi of the Leaf Village, right? Okay, you can go on and step back."

' _Kabuto?'_ That name sounded familiar. Yes, that was the owner of the fourth chakra that joined up with Sasuke's group in the forest before meeting his team at the tower. Misora had identified his signature, and now Tsukiko had a face. She cocked her head slightly. ' _Now why would someone with that much chakra just drop out? That's outright suspicious.'_

"Gotcha." With that, the young man turned and began to walk away.

"Kabuto! You can't quit!" Naruto looked hurt and surprised that the older ninja was leaving. "I don't get this, what's going on?"

The young man stopped, looking back at Naruto sadly. "Oh, Naruto," he sighed. "I'm sorry, but my body's just too beat up. I can't hack it. That fact is, ever since orientation and that dust-up with the Sound village team, I've had no hearing at all in my left ear." He shook his head. "And now to have to put my life on the line? To fight again right away without a break? I can't do it."

Naruto looked away sadly, unable to say anything.

"Smart if he knows his limits," Tsukiko observed. "But I don't think that's the story here."

"Seems to me I've seen that one before," the Third Hokage noted, nodding in agreement with Tsukiko's words. "If memory serves, this isn't the first time he's dropped out before a battle. What kind of game is he playing?"

After a beat of silence, Ibiki glanced at Anko, who was holding a similar clipboard to Hayate, with all the genins' information. "Anko?" He chided.

"O-Oh, right." Quickly she flipped through the pages. "Kabuto Yakushi. Says here he's...failed six times in a row."

' _Well now. If that's not a red flag…'_

"What do you have on his background?" The old man asked.

"His time at the academy was not what you'd call impressive," Anko answered, her eyes scanning the page. "Average grades. Took him a full three tries to pass the graduation exam. As far as the missions he's carried out since then, there's been two C-ranks and fourteen D-ranks. It's not exactly a battle record to write home about." She paused, her eyes lingering on something. "However…"

"Go on," The Hokage urged.

"There's something before his time in the Academy." She paused. "Do you remember the child? The one who was found after the Battle of Kikyo Pass? The only survivor."

"I remember the story." He frowned. "It was said a small boy was found among the enemy dead on the battlefield. He was found barely alive and brought back by a jounin from the medical unit. You're saying this is that boy?"

Tsukiko watched Kabuto leave, suddenly struck by the feeling that she was looking at her own reflection. He was the same age as her, found in the same situation as her, and yet…

"No," she said calmly, red eyes watching the retreating boy like a hawk. "Children found in battlefields, surrounded by corpses, are not ordinary." She glanced at Sasuke. "They will themselves to be stronger than those around them, either out of self-preservation or a desire for revenge. Kabuto is hiding something. There's a reason he doesn't want us to see how he fights."

Silence followed her statement, each person lost in their own thoughts.

Tsukiko found herself watching Sasuke argue with his teammates, a fond smile appearing on her face. She could guess that they were trying to get him to quit. An excellent exercise in futility. If there was anything she knew for certain about Uchiha men, it's that they're stubborn to a fault.

"I'm still concerned about what Orochimaru said." Lord Hokage broke the silence, glancing between Anko and Tsukiko. "Allow the boy to continue with the exam for now, and we'll see what happens."

Anko immediately began protesting, but the old man wasn't done. "However," he continued, his gravelly voice stern. "At the first sign of the curse mark growing or his power getting out of control, we will step in and stop it."

"...As you wish," Anko agreed reluctantly.

Tsukiko smiled smugly, easily agreeing. If the mark did act up, she wanted Sasuke immediately out of danger. But for now, he could handle it.

"We will now begin the preliminary round," Hayate announced. "This round will consist of one-on-one individual combat at full battle intensity. This is not an exercise. There are twenty-four of you remaining, so that means we will need twelve matches. The surviving candidates from those ten matches will advance to the third exam. As for the rules," he continued, his face grave. "There are none. You will fight until one dies, concedes defeat, or is rendered physically incapable of continuing the contest.

"Naturally, those who are losing are urged to concede defeat promptly to avoid a fatal outcome. Furthermore, as proctor, I'm given a certain amount of leeway in judging the matches." He coughed. "I might occasionally intervene if a match seems hopeless, to save as many lives as possible. Now, it's time to reveal what fate has been chosen for you."

Anko gave the order, and a section of wall opened to reveal a large monitor.

"The names of each pair of opponents are chosen completely at random," Hayate explained, gesturing to the monitor. Before each match, these names will appear on the display behind me." He paused, then shrugged. "As there's nothing more to say, let's begin. In a moment, the names of the first two opponents will appear."

Everyone cast their eyes to the screen, which began shuffling through the names of the genin. A few seconds later, it stopped.

"YOROI AKADO VS SASUKE UCHIHA"

"Damn," Tsukiko cursed under her breath. ' _Of course he's first. Anything else would be too easy, wouldn't it?'_

"Alright, the names that were chosen, come forward."

Both boys stepped out of line. Yoroi was from Kabuto's team, dressed in the same purple and white outfit. He had black lenses over his eyes with no indication as to how they stayed in place, and was several inches taller than the younger Sasuke.

"You have been chosen for the first match," Hayate announced, sounding bored. "Yoroi Akado and Sasuke Uchiha. Are there any objections?"

"None here," Sasuke answered confidently.

"No."

Tsukiko traded an amused glance with Kakashi. "That kid."

The Hokage turned to her. "Tsukiko, for the preliminary round, I want you to stay with the genin and other jounin watching. Keep an eye on the Sand genin in particular. We will worry about Orochimaru." To Kakashi, he said, "As soon as his match is done, take Sasuke and seal his curse mark. With any luck, he'll be able to live with it as Anko does."

Both jounin nodded, and walked toward the stairs leading to the catwalk several feet above the arena.

Tsukiko squeezed Sasuke's unhurt shoulder as she walked by. "Good luck," she smiled.

"But don't use your Sharingan," Kakashi added in a low voice, pausing behind the boy.

Sasuke looked surprised, then smiled in acceptance. "So you two know about it."

"If that mark on your neck gets out of control, your life could be in danger," Kakashi warned, not looking at Sasuke.

"I'm aware of that."

"Just so you know, if it gets to that point, I'll have to step in and stop the fight. Good luck."

Sasuke looked up at him incredulously.

Tsukiko smirked, pausing as if to adjust her kunai pack. "If he doesn't, I will. But that will blow my cover, so I need you to be smart about this." She met his gaze and nodded. "You can do it. But don't use your chakra _at all_."

Leaving him with that bit of advice, she followed Kakashi.

Her team was several feet away from Naruto and Sakura, nervously watching the two fighters below.

"Tsukiko-Sensei!" Midori spoke in a slightly panicked whisper. "What are you doing up here? Aren't you going to get in trouble?"

"All eyes will be on the fighting," Tsukiko answered, tugging her blond ponytail playfully. "So stop worrying. Besides, my orders are to proctor from up here." She grinned. "And I have to cheer my team on, don't I?"

"Hell yeah, she does!" Masuko gave her a thumbs up. "These girls are gonna kick butt, no matter who their opponent is!"

Tsukiko nodded, gesturing to the pair below. "Watch closely, and study their movements. There's a good chance you'll have to fight against one of them in the third exam. Treat every fight like a window into your opponent's weaknesses."

Chiyo nodded determinedly, her turquoise eyes shining. "Right! I've been wanting to see how Sasuke fights for a while! I mean, he lives with Tsukiko-Sensei, so he must be strong!"

The white-haired jounin gave a one-armed shrug in response.

Midori glanced sideways, further down the catwalk. "I just hope I don't have to fight him," she mumbled, her cheeks slightly darkening.

"Oh?" Masuko grinned wickedly, eyes gleaming. "Does Midori have a crush? A secret boyfriend? Tell Masuko-Sensei~"

The younger girl looked away quickly. "It's not like that!" She protested. "I've just known him a long time, and I know how strong he is. There's no way I can beat him."

Tsukiko's eyes searched in the direction Midori had glanced. ' _Let's see. If I were a betting girl, I'd say—'_

"The Hyuga boy?"

Midori's face could've put a tomato to shame. "Hinata and I grew up together," she explained quickly. "Our parents are friends, so I spent a lot of time at her house. Neji's her cousin, so I just happened to see him a lot. He's really strong, and he's a year older, so he has more experience and more training. I'm just being practical!"

Masuko was practically bouncing. "Chiyo, point him out! I haven't been here long enough to know everyone! As the dad of our group, I need to know exactly who this boy is!"

Smirking, Chiyo gestured to Guy's team. "The one with the purple eyes."

"Oh, a Byakugan user, eh? Well that's not a bad choice at—" She broke off, frowning playfully, her eyes narrowing. "Actually no. Bad choice. He's one of Bowlcut's kids."

"Bowlcut?" Tsukiko repeated, watching Hayate and the other proctors clear the area after making the final preparations for the preliminary round. "You mean Guy?"

"Oh, so I'm supposed to remember his name, but it's fine that I've had to remind him of mine three times today?" Masuko flipped her hair back, muttering darkly. "Maybe a punch to the face will make him remember."

Tsukiko raised an eyebrow. "Have we discovered a hidden nerve?"

"Anyway, Midori, he can't be that strong if Bowlcut is his sensei," Masuko continued, as if she hadn't heard the younger jounin. "And even if even if he is, take my advice." Her canine gleamed as she smiled cockily, winking at the younger girl. "The best way to make a guy notice you is to beat the crap out of him. A good fight can really bring two people together."

Tsukiko's eye twitched. "What do they teach you in the Mist?"

"How to remember someone's name," Masuko sniffed haughtily, making the two genin laugh.

"Let the first match begin!" Hayate's announcement brought all side conversations to a screeching halt.

The white-haired ninja gripped the railing tightly. "Come on, Sasuke," she whispered.

It was immediately apparent that Sasuke was at a severe disadvantage. From the very first shuriken thrown, it was obvious the curse mark was causing him no small amount of pain. That added to Yoroi's peculiar technique of draining his opponent's energy, physical and spiritual, and things didn't look good for him.

Tsukiko's eyes glowed yellow as she read the air patterns, monitoring Sasuke's chakra. Her experience with Misora had given her plenty of practice sensing out familiar energies, and it was already coming in handy. If Sasuke's chakra became tainted, she could signal Kakashi to intervene.

However, Naruto's somewhat abusively shouted encouragement must have given him an idea. He dodged Yoroi's deadly punches and swung underneath him, kicking upward into his jaw and flying underneath him in the same position as his opponent.

"Where on earth did Sasuke learn Dancing Leaf Shadow?" Tsukiko cocked her head, looking sideways at Kakashi. "Did you teach him such an advanced Taijutsu move?"

The older jounin shook his head, shrugging. "No, but he probably used his Sharingan to copy someone else." He glanced down the catwalk.

Before Tsukiko could look, she was distracted by Sasuke's chakra, which was being steadily consumed by the spreading curse mark.

Tsukiko readied herself to give the signal, waiting for the moment Sasuke seemed no longer in control. To her immense relief, however, he was able to reassert his will over the mark, and it receded back to its original spot.

After that, it was all over. Sasuke swiftly dispatched his opponent with a wicked heel slam to the stomach, naming the move "Lion's Barrage." Yoroi fell to the ground, unconscious, and Sasuke was declared the winner.

"Well done, Sasuke," Tsukiko murmured, trying to stop herself from beaming with pride.

The moment the fight was over, Kakashi appeared behind Sasuke, stopping him from falling over. He said something she couldn't hear, glancing back up at the catwalk.

This time, she had no difficulty following his gaze. Both Guy and Lee were looking perturbed, as if something during that fight had surprised them. The younger jounin walked over to them, curious.

"Guy, that wouldn't have been your Taijutsu I just saw Sasuke using, would it?" Tsukiko couldn't resist teasing the older ninja, knowing how prideful he was of his excellent physical skills.

Guy nodded, crossing his arms. "It would seem the boy copied it when he and Lee had a bit of a sparring match before the first exam."

Tsukiko smiled at the young ninja. "Is that so? I'm impressed, Lee. Taijutsu like that, without taking physical damage, is something to be proud of. From what I understand, Lotus techniques take massive physical endurance. Sasuke may have copied it, but he's come out worse for wear."

"Thank you," Lee smiled, but it faded as his gaze returned to Sasuke.

Guy frowned at her. "What I want to know is how that kid's Sharingan is so far along. You've been pushing him, haven't you, Tsukiko?"

She shrugged, smiling mysteriously. "He's a talented kid."

' _Besides, if you think that's impressive, wait until it's fully developed. Sasuke's Sharingan is only in its second stage.'_ A fully awakened Sharingan had three tomoe marks, and while already powerful, Sasuke still only had two.

Naruto was practically shouted himself hoarse by this time, somehow managing to insult and congratulate the young Uchiha in the same moment.

After a slight (inaudible) argument between Kakashi and Sasuke, during which Tsukiko glared at Sasuke from up at the catwalk, he and Kakashi left the arena to seal the curse mark. Her Gensogan was switched to lightning, knowing that the blank white of her eyes combined with her hair unnerved the boy, and therefore made her glares far more effective.

Releasing the Gensogan, Tsukiko rubbed her eyes tiredly. The strain of using them constantly the last few days was starting to wear on her. Her chakra was nearing its limit, and she needed to preserve what she had in case of an emergency.

"Boy, you look exhausted," Masuko observed as the younger ninja walked back to her team. "What have you been up to these last few days?"

"I'll tell you later," Tsukiko replied, glancing meaningfully at the closely watching genin.

"Ok then," Hayate said, stepping to the center of the arena. "Let's move right on to the second match."

The monitor came to life, and revealed the second match-up to be Shino Aburame and Zaku Abumi.

Unfamiliar with the second name, Tsukiko's eyes immediately went to the Rain, Sand, and Sound groups on the opposite side of the catwalk. One of the Sound genin stepped forward, his arms in slings. Even so, he smiled cockily as he made his way to the arena.

Her gaze slid to the boy's sensei. He'd hung back in the shadow cast by an overhanging structure, and she couldn't say she'd noticed him in the lineup earlier.

Even now, it was hard for her to focus on him, like her eyes wanted to move somewhere else. The man just seemed to repel attention.

' _Genjutsu?'_ Instantly suspicious, Tsukiko forced herself to stare at the man, really see him. Breaking a Genjutsu was nothing to her, after all her experience with the Sharingan. Muttering a quick release, she could finally make out the man's face.

Sharp features, dark hair in a high ponytail, and gold reptilian eyes that met her gaze unflinchingly, somehow knowing that she'd broken his Genjutsu.

The man smirked mockingly, his tongue flicking out momentarily as he lifted a hand and tapped his eyes knowingly.

Fear, anger, and desperation all collided instantly in the young woman, and she fought the immediate instinct to shield her eyes. But before she could do anything, Orochimaru vanished with a puff of smoke.

Furious, Tsukiko swung her gaze to the Hokage who'd seen the brief encounter. He shook his head at her, denying her permission to chase after Orochimaru, knowing that she had no way to tell where he'd gone.

Concern for Sasuke rolled in her stomach, but she followed orders, trusting that Kakashi and the Anbu could keep him safe for the time being.

Forcing herself to focus on the match, Tsukiko viciously hoped that Shino would beat the hell out of the Sound genin.

And she got her wish. Shino won, with a scary exhibition of his insect control that had Masuko cringing with disgust, shaking her head and saying "Nope," over and over. Tsukiko wasn't surprised. The Aburame clan was said to allow countless bugs to live inside of them, living off their chakra and doing their bidding. Disgusting, but effective.

A few seconds later, Kakashi appeared, immediately bombarded with questions from his team about Sasuke's health. He quickly informed them that Sasuke was resting soundly in the infirmary, making a full recovery.

Tsukiko glanced at him sharply, gesturing with her head to an unoccupied section of the catwalk. Masuko watched her curiously, but said nothing as the two passed.

"Orochimaru was here." Tsukiko wasted no time on pleasantries. "He was using a Genjutsu to make us overlook him, but he was with the Sound genin."

Kakashi sighed, rubbing his neck. "I thought as much. He showed up when I was sealing Sasuke's mark. Don't worry, he's fine," the man was quick to inform her, reading the panic in her eyes. "He didn't even try to fight me. But he made it quite clear that he's after the Sharingan. He also revealed that he created the Sound village himself, and that he full expects Sasuke to join him."

Tsukiko growled low in her throat. "And why, pray tell, would he do that?"

Kakashi met her gaze evenly. "Orochimaru said that avengers will do anything for power."

Her breath caught, and she stared, stunned, unable to speak. Tsukiko's eyes fell to the ground, and her jaw tightened as she tried to convince herself that what Kakashi was implying wasn't true. Would Sasuke, in his quest for revenge, join Orochimaru?

Desperate as she tried, she couldn't think of any realistic reason why that wouldn't be the case. Sasuke was relentless in his drive to surpass Itachi, and Orochimaru was a master manipulator. If she didn't do something, it was possible that—

' _No. No, no, no. I won't let Itachi destroy our family a second time!'_

"What can we do?" She raised her head and met Kakashi's sympathetic but calculating gaze. "At this point, I know I don't have enough influence with him to stop him if he tries to go. We're a constant reminder to each other of what happened in the past. I'm afraid my presence only enhances his drive."

Kakashi nodded slowly. "Maybe we can use that to our advantage. Show Sasuke that he can become powerful in the village. I don't think he's the type to be swayed by power he can't control, unless he feels there's no other option. I'll show him some advanced moves when he gets better, and you can be the goal in the meantime."

"What do you mean?" Tsukiko cocked her head slightly.

"What I mean is, there's no one who knows Itachi better than you. How he fights, how he thinks. Your fighting style was created with regards to his. So, Sasuke's initial goal should be to defeat you. If he becomes that strong, then he has a chance with Itachi."

Tsukiko nodded slowly. "That's a dangerous game to play," she cautioned. "If I go too easy on him, he'll run off half-cocked and get himself killed. But if I push him too far, and show him exactly how much distance there is between us, that in and of itself might send him straight into Orochimaru's hands. You've got to make him stronger than me."

Kakashi's visible eye sharpened with determination. "And you have to balance how you fight with him from now on."

The young woman met his gaze. "I never wanted him to see how strong I am. It's one of the reasons I didn't want to be his teacher. But if he wants a challenge, then he's going to get one. I can't afford to baby him anymore, tough as it is." She smiled ruefully. "He's my kid brother, after all."

Kakashi gripped her shoulder encouragingly. "Sasuke will be safe," he promised. "Between the two of us, we'll show him a different path from the one he's on." Leaving her with that, Kakashi walked past Tsukiko and rejoined his team, leaving her no choice but to do the same, troubled as she was. She stood a bit away from everyone, maintaining her proctor facade.

The next few matches passed quickly and without incident. The Sand genin with the purple face markings defeated the final member of Kabuto's team with impressive puppetry skills. Midori watched him closely, obviously impressed. And no surprise. Her family employed a similar healing technique called Chakra Stitching, which was ironically copied from the Sand village's top healers. The Hisoka clan had further developed it, however, able to heal on a molecular level in its highest form. As such, it was no surprise that Midori would want to watch such a skilled puppeteer, whose chakra thread control was really quite astounding considering his age.

After that, Ino and Sakura fought. And, while it wasn't the most impressive battle, it also seemed like a necessary one. There was certainly a lot of animosity between the two girls. Unfortunately, there was no definitive winner, as both were simultaneously knocked out and therefore disqualified.

As for match number five…

"CHIYO MITSURU VS TENKA OWARI

"Finally!" Chiyo cracked her knuckles, grinning broadly. "My turn!"

Masuko smiled evilly. "Oooh, it's one of those Rain genin. Their sensei was extremely confident, considering he's five-foot nothing. Let's see if he was right."

Tsukiko, not being especially tall at five-foot-five, rolled her eyes. "Chiyo, do your best, but remember that everyone is watching and reading your moves. Try to finish this quickly." She spoke out of the corner of her mouth, needing to keep up the appearance of not being biased.

The dark-haired girl took a deep breath, losing the cocky attitude for a moment to smile up at her sensei. "Don't worry. Masuko-Sensei's been showing me a couple new moves."

Raising an eyebrow, Tsukiko watched Chiyo approach her opponent, a tall, scrawny guy with close-cropped black hair and purple eyes. He sneered at the young genin as she approached, obviously already considering himself victorious.

As soon as Hayate gave the signal to start, the skinny ninja shot off, his form a blur. Kunai and shuriken appeared seemingly from thin air, all heading towards the young girl.

' _Hmm, so her opponent relies on using his chakra to boost his speed. That probably means hand-to-hand is not his strong point. If Chiyo can land a blow, then this should be over quickly.'_

Chiyo, to her credit, was not off-put by the blur of motion. She accurately predicted where most of the kunai would land, and had only been grazed by one or two. She was starting to slow though, her time in the Forest of Death catching up.

"Gotcha!" She shouted, lunging forward. Her eyes had been steadily following the Rain ninja, getting a feel for his movements and trying to predict where he'd pause.

A blur of thin needles shot out from the Rain ninja, aiming directly for Chiyo's face.

With a startled cry, Chiyo jumped back, her body suddenly engulfed in blue chakra as she scowled, unharmed.

"Damn," Masuko cursed, glaring at the Rain genin. "I was hoping she could save that technique."

"When did you teach her Chakra Armor?" Tsukiko questioned, glancing at her friend. It was Masuko's signature defensive move, the same she'd used to break out of the ground during their first fight.

Masuko grinned. "We've been working on it for a bit during one-on-one sessions. She can only do the first stage, more of a chakra shell than armor, but it should be enough."

The Chakra Armor technique was a specialty of the Arashi family on Masuko's mother's side. The user must have a massive chakra that is built up and stored over time. When in battle, the user could release the stored chakra in a blue protective barrier that surrounded their body and acted as armor.

Masuko, known as the Armored Shinobi in her former village, had mastered this technique and improved it to suit her own needs. And now, she'd seen fit to pass on her knowledge.

Chiyo's shell wouldn't hold up under a heavy Taijutsu attack, or even advanced nature chakra. But it sure as hell could hold up against a few kunai.

Once again spotting the pattern to his movement, Chiyo darted forward, her fist tightening in preparation.

Needles again shot out at her face, her opponent predicting her movements as well. This time however, Chiyo didn't retreat.

The needles stopped less than two inches from her face, deflecting off the chakra shell that protected her. Caught off-guard, the Rain genin was not expecting the punch to the face, breaking his nose and knocking him to the ground, unconscious.

"Chiyo Mitsuru is the winner," Hayate announced, coughing. "She will advance to the next round."

"Yes!" Chiyo jumped and threw her fist into the air. "I did it!"

"Atta girl," Masuko said approvingly, giving her a thumbs up. The former Mist ninja was practically bursting with pride, ruffling the younger girl's hair as she returned to their team.

"That was amazing!" Midori exclaimed, hugging her teammate. "See, I told you there was nothing to worry about!"

Chiyo hugged her back, smiling gratefully. "You were right," she sighed.

Tsukiko caught her eye and winked. "Nicely done," she mouthed.

Chiyo beamed.

* * *

Then:

Countless crows assaulted his enemy. The large man cried out, surrounded by a crowd of beaks so dense, there was no opening for him to flee. Further trapping him was the spinning wind that prevented him from escaping above, courtesy of Tsukiko.

The enemy had been neatly caught by his Shadow Clone technique.

"Now!" Itachi shouted from the trees above, far from the flock of crows. Tsukiko sat beside him, her face screwed up in concentration as she skillfully manipulated Wind, her eyes a soft gold color. Looking down, he could see the enemy shrieking, and Tenma on the ground below him, too stunned to even get to his feet. Yuki and Shinko were also there, surrounding them.

"Here we go, Shinko!"

"All right!"

The pair sprang toward the enemy, and the crows flew up into the air and disappeared into the woods. Tsukiko also released her hold on the winds, making sure her teammates wouldn't get caught up in it.

"Aaaaah!" The man cried out in agony, and collapsed.

Itachi winced slightly at the death of the enemy. It was unavoidable, given the circumstances, and he by no means felt pity for the man, but a life had been lost due to his actions. He had killed someone.

He felt a warm hand on his shoulder, and turned to meet Tsukiko's eyes, now back to their usual black. Sorrow and understanding filled her black orbs.

"We're all to blame," she said quietly, frowning sadly at the body. "And until we become stronger, this will continue to happen. We just need to keep training."

' _Tsukiko_. _How is it you always know what I'm feeling?'_

Perhaps she saw the gratitude in his eyes, because she gave him a soft smile before removing her hand from his shoulder, turning her attention to their sensei.

Unbidden, Itachi's hand moved to touch his cheek, the place where she had kissed him only yesterday. He knew girls tended to do that when happy, but he'd only ever seen Tsukiko kiss Sasuke's cheeks or forehead. Never his.

It was one of the few times in his life where he'd been frozen, unable to think of anything to say or do. His heart had begun to beat erratically, and all he could do was stare dumbly at her retreating figure, a warm feeling spreading through him.

Today, Tsukiko was acting like nothing had happened, and Itachi was content to follow suit, for even he had no idea _what_ had changed, only that something _had_ changed. He felt more attuned to Tsukiko, knew exactly where she was even if she was out of sight, and his heart began to pound whenever she was near.

' _Perhaps I'm sick…_ ' The thought was worrying, especially since they'd only just completed their first mission. He couldn't fall ill now. ' _I'll ask mother about it.'_

Itachi quietly leaped down from his branch at the signal from Yuki.

"Nice call there, Itachi," the older man clapped. "And incredible chakra control, Tsukiko." Tenma stared, annoyed, as he pulled himself off the ground. Shinko didn't pay them any attention, but went to check on the dead enemy.

It had been discovered that one of the vegetable peddlers who came and went from Konohagakure was a spy for Iwagakure, the Hidden Stone Village. Itachi's Team Two had been given the order to dispose of him, and so they had left the village to find the spy. Normally, it was The Anbu's job to eliminate intelligence agents from enemy nations, but all the Anbu were currently busy with a certain urgent mission; not one member remained in the village.

 _The attempted kidnapping of Hinata Hyuga…_

The head ninja of the village of Kumogakure, the Hidden Cloud Village, who had an antagonistic relationship with Konohagakure for many years, journeyed to the village to sign a peace treaty. The mood of the village was celebratory, but then Hinata, the daughter of the Hyuga clan chief, was very nearly kidnapped. The kidnapper was killed, and the girl returned home unscathed, but since the kidnapper was actually the head ninja of Kumogakure, the situation developed into a standoff between the villages. Their head ninja murdered, Kumogakure insisted on compensation, in the form of the body of the Hyuga family head. Konoha pretended that the man's twin brother was the actual family head and placated Kumogakure with that, somehow managing to avert a descent into war.

Given the urgency of the situation, the Anbu were all sent out, and the village's key ninja were all on standby in case fighting did break out, so they couldn't make any careless moves. That said, they couldn't exactly let a Stone Village spy slip out from under their noses.

And here, Team Two was selected. In truth, rather than Team Two, it was Tsukiko and Itachi who had been chosen. Despite being only seven, both of their practical abilities were already on par with the average chunin, and Tsukiko's Gensogan made her even stronger. Thus they had drawn the attention of the leaders of Konoha.

The job itself had gone smoothly enough. The spy was caught so easily by the trap Itachi set outside the village that it was almost comical; the man made his own position blindingly clear. With Itachi in the lead, Team Two spread out around the man and closed in on him.

But Tenma was in too much of a hurry.

The mission would've been nice and easy if they had simply taken the time to track the man, but, eager for recognition, Tenma had charged out ahead of the others. And just as a cornered mouse will lash out at the cat, the desperate spy launched an attack on Tenma's throat. Tsukiko had used Wind to deflect the blade, and Itachi used a Shadow Clone to distract the spy. They had saved Tenma in the nick of time.

The spy's kunai had dug into Itachi, but his clone used a substitution technique, transforming into an enormous murder of crows, and then counterattacked, Tsukiko providing backup.

"Not costumin' himself none," Shinko muttered, crouching down in front of the spy's corpse. Having mainly studied healing ninja arts at school, she was assigned to the team for such times as this. Assessing whether an enemy was in disguise, possessing knowledge about poisons, and treating the injuries of their comrades-a squad needed to have someone versed in the healing arts.

"He isn't? Well, that's good," Yuki remarked calmly.

"You." Shinko stood up, put both hands on her hips, and looked at Tenma, her green eyes flashing dangerously. "Don't s'pose you got a word or two to say to Itachi and Tsukiko?"

"Huh?" Raising a single blond eyebrow with force, Tenma looked off in a different direction.

"Weren't for Tsukiko's quick thinking, and Itachi's clone, you'd be dead right now. You can't at least thank them?"

"I'm telling you, I got no idea what you're talking about."

"Seriously, you. What kinda-" Shinko took an angry step toward him.

Itachi stepped in between then. "Enough." He stretched out his right hand in front of Shinko.

"Itachi's right," Tsukiko said, giving Tenma a warning glance as she turned to Shinko. "The mission was a success, and no one got hurt, so everything is fine."

"I-It's basically cos of you two takin' that attitude that this boy runs off all wild, yeah?" Shinko asked. "Tsukiko, you might be a little one, but you're a right genin too. Got to give him the what-for sometimes.

"It's fine, Shinko," Itachi answered, a smile playing on his face. He was, in spite of himself, beginning to like the loud brunette. She didn't fawn all over him like other girls, and seemed to actually like Tsukiko, going so far as to help her tie her hair back before the mission and help brush off dirt and leaves from her clothes and hair. She was also a healer, which Itachi respected immensely. In fact, had he not seen that battlefield all those years ago, he might very well have become a medical ninja himself. Healing was preferable to killing, after all. But it was his mission, not to fix wounds, but to prevent them from ever occurring in the first place.

Shinko sighed, turning away. "Don't let 'im do what all he wants, yeah?"

Yuki watched over them nervously, too incompetent to actually prevent a fight.

"Even if you hadn't helped me out," Tenma growled behind him. "I wouldn't have got taken down."

"Uh-huh." Shinko rolled her eyes.

Itachi stiffened at the feeling in the air. ' _Bloodlust.'_ He coolly followed it to its source, feeling Tsukiko turn in the same direction.

Tenma. His fist, coming toward Itachi's face. With the minimal amount of movement, the younger boy grabbed it.

Beside him, Tsukiko's arm had erupted into flame, and she had turned to lash out at the enemy behind her. Seeing only Tenma, however, she immediately extinguished the fire, her red eyes glaring angrily at the former bully.

"I really can't stand that attitude of yours, like you just see through everything and anything," Tenma hissed, his clenched teeth squeaking.

"Will you get over it if I apologize?" Itachi asked, his expression unchanging.

"I'm telling you, that kind of answer drives me nuts!" Releasing his fist, this time Tenma sent a kick flying.

Itachi avoided this simply by throwing back his upper body.

With the force of his leg cutting vainly through the air, the older boy spun around twice. And then, with his back to Itachi, he dropped down to sit on the ground. "Not like my physical techniques would reach you or anything," Tenma muttered, his back still turned. "You can do anything. You got no idea how I feel."

Itachi didn't know what to say. He and Tsukiko glanced at each other helplessly.

"I'm sorry about what happened at school. And that thing before…" Tenma hung his head, motionless. "Thanks."

Tsukiko smiled, placing a hand on the older boy's shoulder. "Hey, we're a team. And that means we help each other out." Her bright smile turned to Itachi and Shinko before returning to Tenma, who lifted his head in response to her words.

His lips quirked slightly at Tsukiko's infectious expression, and he nodded. "Yeah, we're a team."

Itachi's hand touched his cheek again, that strange feeling returning. It might have been pride in his partner, but felt a lot stronger.

' _I wonder what this is…'_

* * *

Now:

The next match was a female Sand genin named Temari versus Tenten, a cute Leaf ninja in Guy's squad. She showed an excellent use of weapons, but it was clear Temari was the victor from the outset. The large weapon on her back proved to be a giant fan, and she released a massive whirlwind that tore into Tenten and rendered her unconscious. The poor girl landed heavily on Temari's folded fan, her body arching as her back slammed into the weapon. It was over quickly, and proved yet again that the Sand team was one that needed to be carefully watched.

Tsukiko studied them closely. ' _I wonder what talents the red-headed one possesses?'_

Lee jumped down into the arena to catch Tenten as the smug Sand girl threw her off her fan. "Hey, nice catch," she smirked, leaning on her fan.

"What is wrong with you?!" Lee shouted, gently laying Tenten on the ground. "She may have lost the match, but that is no way to treat an opponent who has done her best."

"Beat it!" The blond girl snapped, slamming her fan down once. "And take that sack of garbage with you."

The instant Lee began to move, the cry, "Leaf Hurricane," leaving his mouth, Tsukiko and Guy moved.

Temari blocked the kick easily, still smirking at the furious boy. "Not even close. Pathetic."

"What did you say?!"

"Lee, stop!" Guy appeared behind Lee and Tsukiko appeared in front of him, separating the two fighters.

"That's enough," she ordered, speaking to both though she faced the Sand girl. "Any more unauthorized fighting will disqualify the both of you."

The Sand genin narrowed her eyes, while Tsukiko looked at her calmly. "You've already won your match. Don't make me repeat myself."

"Temari, forget them," a raspy voice ordered. "The match is over, so get up here." The Sand genin with the gourd glared down at his teammate. "You won. Why are you wasting your time with that pathetic loser and his ridiculous mentor?"

Tsukiko locked eyes with the red-haired boy, raising an eyebrow at his arrogance. ' _My, my…'_

The boy's gaze slid to Lee, and the young Leaf ninja shook with anger.

Guy put a hand on his shoulder. "Just calm down, Lee." The older ninja smiled knowingly. "A word of warning. You Sand villagers have no idea what Lee is capable of. Remember, he still hasn't fought yet. So I'd be careful if I were you."

Tsukiko grinned, as she, Guy, and Lee returned to the catwalk, allowing the medics to take Tenten. ' _I'd like to see what Lee can do, myself.'_

Match seven was a Leaf ninja named Shikamaru and a Sound ninja named Kin. Tsukiko recognized him as the boy who'd complained about going into the forest, and didn't really expect much, especially after he was hit so quickly with the Sound girl's needles.

So it was a pleasant surprise to see such an intelligent fighter. Shikamaru used the girl's jutsu against her, pretending his Shadow Possession Jutsu was just the shadow from the threads she used to control her bells. After that, he made the girl dodge his attack and slam her head against the back wall, knocking her unconscious. A brilliant use of surroundings and manipulation to defeat an opponent.

' _Well now,'_ Tsukiko thought, cocking her head slightly. ' _I never would have suspected that. Out of all the genin so far, he's probably the most deserving of being a chunin.'_ Strength was only half the battle. A chunin was responsible for leading a team, after all. They needed to be able to make snap decisions based on tactical advantages and an understanding of their opponent. He was the only genin to have not simply overwhelmed his challenger with brute force, winning with brains rather than brawns.

"Oh!" Midori jumped slightly, her eyes widening as her name flashed on the monitor.

KIOKA NIKKAN VS MIDORI HISOKA

"Nice!" Masuko fistpumped. "My girls get to wipe out the Rain genin. That worked out pretty well!" She turned to the uneasy girl at her side. "Come on Midori! Let's see what Tsukiko's been teaching you!"

Midori caught Tsukiko's eye, and the older woman nodded slightly from her spot several feet away.

"Hey, relax," Chiyo placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. "You kicked butt in the forest! I know you don't like fighting, but you have to win! I want us to go to the third exam together, as a team!"

The blond genin looked at Chiyo with surprise, then straightened slightly. "Okay," she nodded. "I'll try to finish this quickly."

Tsukiko watched her student make her way to the arena, where her opponent was waiting. Kioka was a small, slender genin with long medium-length black hair, blue eyes, and a large container of some kind in her left hand. She had little presence, not even seeming to acknowledge her opponent. In a way, the two were very similar. Although, there was a certain calmness to the Rain girl that was not to be trusted.

Midori bowed her head. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Kioka. I hope we can be friends after this."

Kioka gave no response, her face expressionless.

"That's my girl!" Masuko wiped her eyes dramatically. "Such a sweetheart!"

Tsukiko couldn't help but agree. Midori had come a long way in the last few months, but had never lost her caring nature. She was a healer, and loathed having to hurt someone. The girl reminded Tsukiko of Itachi in that regard. But, Midori was talented, and despite her shy countenance, she had an impeccable knowledge of the human body, and where to target pressure points with her chakra threads. She wouldn't go down easily.

"Begin!"

Kioka silently leaped backwards, popping the lid off the container. A fountain of water exploded from the deceptively small jug to cover the arena floor.

Midori jumped up to avoid the water, but cocked her head in obvious confusion as the Rain genin made a series of complex hand signs, but performed no obvious jutsu.

That is, until the water started to move, separating from the one large puddle into a series of smaller puddles that turned the arena into a spotted minefield.

"What's going on?" Chiyo asked as Midori landed lightly, not touching the water.

Kioka's lips pulled up in a slow smile. "You're finished." She stepped into the closest puddle, and was sucked in.

"No way!" Masuko glared at the arena. "How can a brat like her know _that_ technique?!"

"What are you talking about?" Chiyo looked worriedly down at her friend.

Midori turned her head from side to side, looking for movement. Something from behind startled her, and she leapt up to avoid three kunai.

The Rain girl had emerged from a different puddle, only visible from the waist up. "You sensed my presence. Impressive. But you can't dodge forever."

Masuko gripped the railing tightly. "I can't believe it!" She hissed. "That is a highly advanced mix of Water Transportation and the Hiding in Water technique. Way beyond genin level!" She glared at the Rain sensei, who crossed his arms and looked at her smugly. "That's it," she growled, pushing up the sleeves of her protective shirt. "I'm gonna beat the crap outta that guy!"

"You're missing the fight," Tsukiko admonished, watching Midori with some concern.

The Leaf girl was having a tough time dodging, barely having time to move before another set of projectiles was coming her way. She picked up the thrown kunai as she bounced around, her eyes constantly moving. In spite of her increased arsenal, she hadn't had time for a single counterattack.

Tsukiko's brow furrowed with worry. This was a tough opponent, there was no doubt about that. In order for Midori to win, she would have to limit her opponent's movements somehow.

"Come on, Midori," she whispered, thinking back to their training sessions.

" _Tsukiko-Sensei, can you show me how to control these things?!" Midori glared at the chakra threads she'd created. "They're way too big! My father's are invisible to the naked eye, which is how he can heal so well. These things might as well be steel pipes!"_

 _Laughing, Tsukiko placed a hand on Midori's shoulder, gesturing to the threads coming from the younger girl's fingertips. "Yeah, but look how many you made! The way they splinter off like that reminds me of tree branches. And, you can control each one individually. That's impressive." She nodded. "You have to keep practicing. It takes absolute chakra control to wield the smaller threads."_

 _Midori sighed._

Now, however, she didn't have the luxury of doubt. There was simply no time.

Evidently, Midori reasoned that the best thing to do would be to remove the puddles. Ripping her outer jacket off, she used the garment like a towel, removing nearly five of the small puddles before Kioka caught on.

Midori cried out at a shuriken hit her shoulder, making her drop the jacket.

The Rain genin snatched the drenched clothing item and disappeared with it, popping up moments later to continue her assault, jacket flung over her shoulder.

Mouth moving as her eyes flickered from puddle to puddle, Midori suddenly grinned. "Gotcha!"

The jacket exploded, a paper bomb stuck in the pocket.

Kioka was blown backwards, hitting the wall before sliding to the ground.

"That's my girl!" Masuko jumped up and down, grinning like a maniac.

Midori bent down, fiddling with all her gathered kunai, watching Kioka out of the corner of her eye.

Amazingly, the Rain girl seemed to have avoided the worst of the explosion, her shoulder where the jacket had been resting taking the most damage. "Very clever!" She growled, sliding back into a puddle. "But I'm not playing around anymore."

The young Leaf genin looked up and smiled. "Me neither, Kioka. But like I said, I hope we can be friends!"

Stretching out her fingers, Midori raised her hands.

The pile of kunai, a mix of hers and Kioka's, all floated up, each one held by a chakra thread. And attached to each kunai, was a white paper bomb.

"What the hell?!" The puppet ninja from the Sand glared at the Leaf girl, obviously not expecting to find another chakra strand user.

Midori jumped straight into the air, her chakra threads floating around her like the branches of a deadly tree. "Between my jacket and the explosion, you lost seven puddles. That leaves you with twenty-one, by my count. Guess how many kunai I have?"

Tsukiko grinned at the look of horror on the Rain girl's face. With each kunai landing in a puddle, there would be nowhere to escape the explosion.

"I suggest you give up," Midori said mildly. "I doubt you can escape this time, and I really don't want to hurt you anymore. Plus, the damage to the arena will be...extensive, to say the least."

"I…" Kioka gritted her teeth, and slowly raised her hand. "I...give up."

"Very well," Hayate coughed. "The winner is Midori. Now, please disengage the paper bombs. I don't want the ring destroyed.

"Yes sir!" Midori landed and began removing the bombs.

Masuko crossed her arms, grinning at the Rain sensei. "And with that, Team Eleven knocks the Village Hidden in the Rain right out of the exams!"

Chiyo laughed, shaking her head. "Midori's really scary with those chakra threads! She can get them down to the width of a wire, and you can't even feel them when they touch you!" She shuddered. "You shoulda' seen what she did to one of the Sand teams in the forest!"

"And yet, she worries that they aren't small enough," Tsukiko sighed. "That girl." She watched Midori pass the Hyuga boy, who nodded to her. The young kunoichi bowed back, her cheeks darkening. A sudden thought occurred to the older woman, and her amused smile was replaced with contemplation. "Hmm, I wonder…"

"Wonder what?" Midori rejoined her team, watching with concern as Kioka was examined by a medical team. "I hope I didn't hurt her too much…"

"I was just wondering if you used those threads of yours on the first round."

Midori's cheeks reddened, and she rubbed her head. "Uh, yeah. I answered the first three questions on my own, but then I had to cheat. There was a chunin plant in front of me, so I wrapped my threads around his fingers and pencil. After that, I just followed the movements."

Masuko hugged her tightly. "I'm so proud of you! Everyone was so impressed." She grabbed Chiyo with her other arm and held her tight. "You two have gotten so strong!"

"Don't get all sappy on us now, Masuko," Tsukiko teased.

The former Mist ninja glared. "Don't listen to her, girls! She's just jealous because she can't join our group hug!"

Tsukiko shrugged goodnaturedly. "Sure, that's it." She winked at the girls. "Good job, both of you. I'm extremely proud."

Chiyo grinned, and Midori ducked her head.

"Um, Tsukiko?"

The young woman looked down into the arena to see Hayate gesturing for her. "I'd appreciate it if you helped me out here."

"What do you need?" She asked, appearing next to him.

He waved at the water all over the floor. "We need to clear this up before the next match can start."

She nodded. "Say no more."

Tsukiko widened her stance, letting out a deep breath as she activated her Gensogan. Her eyes turned blue, and she slowly pulled her arms up over her head.

The water followed suit, rising off the area floor. Swirling her left hand, she molded the liquid into a ball. "Do you have a bucket or do you want me to evaporate it?" She asked Hayate over her shoulder, knowing that several pairs of wide eyes were focused on her.

"Just evaporate it," he coughed, shrugging. "Might as well give them a show." He nodded to the visiting genin.

Tsukiko looked up, and met the sneering eyes of the only remaining Sound ninja. Orochimaru's pet genin that had been destroyed by the Leaf. And further down, the unimpressed Sand team, not even bothering to glance her way.

Perhaps it was the stress of the last five days, the worry over Sasuke, or the fear of a recurring nightmare's return. Or maybe it was the Hokage's speech, rousing something in the young woman that she hadn't felt in a long time: the thrill of a challenge. Of excelling and knocking everyone who doubted her down a peg. She turned back to Hatake with fire in her black eyes. "Alright then. The steam might help that cough of yours."

With far more effort than normal, as her chakra was not very recovered, her right eye slowly turned red, the left staying blue so she could keep the water in the air with her left hand. It was a massive effort to control two elements at once, and not something she had fully mastered. But she had a sudden confidence in herself, and the desire to show off just what she could do.

"This might be a little hot," she warned, raising her voice so the people on the catwalk could hear.

Thrusting her right hand forward, a huge stream of fire erupted from her palm, hitting the water with a loud hiss. A cloud of steam covered the arena like a sauna.

"Open the doors please!" Tsukiko called, both eyes gold now. Using Wind, she shoved one hand toward the open door, using the pressure of hot air hitting cold to essentially create a vacuum that sucked the hot steam out of the room. With the other, she pulled cold air from outside back into the room, creating a situation where, for perhaps two seconds, the people in the arena found it difficult to breathe.

Releasing her breath, Tsukiko dropped her heavy arms limply to her sides, her Gensogan definitely feeling overused. "That good enough, Hayate?" She asked sardonically, trying not to breathe too hard.

The proctor nodded. "Didn't do a thing for my cough, but I think you impressed the visiting villages."

Tsukiko returned to her spot on the catwalk, catching the Hokage's amused smile as he shook his head at her showing off.

' _It may have been a little immature, but it was effective. These Sand ninja need to know exactly what they're dealing with.'_ Still it came at a cost. She was completely spent, with no chance of using her eyes again until she recovered some chakra.

The Sand sensei certainly looked freaked out. But Tsukiko couldn't help but think that wasn't exactly her doing.

The red-headed ninja was staring at her with pure bloodlust, his face dark with it as his hand clenched over his head, right over a curious tattoo that read "love." His teammates were speaking to him urgently, clearly trying to calm him so he didn't leap at her.

' _You're welcome to try your luck, kid, but you might not like the results.'_ Gensogan or no, a genin wouldn't beat her.

Masuko's hand on Tsukiko's shoulder distracted her. "Way to show off!" She said loudly, earning a laugh from the nearby genin. "Geez, madam proctor! Are you trying to make the rest of us look bad?" While she spoke, her hand glowed slightly, her loud words hiding the fact that she was transferring a substantial amount of chakra to the worn out jounin.

Tsukiko looked at her in confusion, grateful for the revitalizing boost in stamina.

The former Mist ninja grinned, her lips barely moving. "You might be fooling everyone else, but not me. You're dead on your feet, and you've used that eye magic of yours way too much." With one last pat to her shoulder, she turned away. "Besides, it's not like I was using any chakra, standing around all day."

Real affection for the purple-haired ninja rose up in Tsukiko's chest. ' _How ironic that my first real friend in three years would be a Mist ninja of all things.'_ Watching Masuko bend over to tease Midori, she amended her statement. ' _No. Not a Mist ninja. Masuko is truly a member of the Leaf now, and we're damn lucky to have her.'_

Masuko's Leaf headband, proudly displayed on her upper right arm, glinted in agreement.

* * *

A.N. This chapter was SO fun to write! As you can see, I gave Midori a lot more attention, and her pairing should be fairly obvious now. Also, a small flashback with Team Two. Now, I've seen the "Itachi Episodes" as I call them, and they show Tenma and Shinko as a lot more friendly than the book. I like the book better, as a team that just can't get along is more interesting to me.

How did you like the fights? Like I said, certain ones will get more attention, but I don't want this to drag more than necessary. I just want her to meet Itachi again! And another moment with Orochimaru, addressing what I thought was a plot hole. He literally looks exactly like himself, and no one noticed, except literally every audience member. At least Genjutsu hides this. Also, he knows he's creepy, and fully uses it to his advantage. My thought while I was writing that bit was that he probably thought "Maybe I should have taken her eyes when I had the chance." I mean, they have definite weaknesses that he wouldn't like (split chakra) but still...

I also liked having Tsukiko show off. You can tell she's a lot more withdrawn than she is in the flashbacks (I wonder why) so it was fun having her go all out. Also, Sasuke! What will happen?! She's the one he has to fight?!

So, now that they've been fleshed out a little more, I wanted to give some quick profiles on my supporting OCs, basically recapping and clarifying what you already know. I don't want to give away too much!

MASUKO ARASHI: While her father's side is a bit of a mystery (to you guys anyway) her mother's clan specializes in chakra armor. I kind of imagine it a bit like Susanoo, to be honest, with a twist of her storing power like Tsunade or Sakura, minus the mark on their foreheads. Instead, the chakra manifests as see-through armored plates that protect her from harm. Masuko's is the most advanced in her clan, which earned her the nickname "The Armored Ninja." The reason she worked so hard to advance it, was because she needed a good defense against a certain chakra-eating sword. With her armor, it can't cut her, and instead feeds on the already stored energy, giving her a chance to counterattack. Yes, Masuko is very good with a sword, (due to sparring with Kisame literally all the time) but hasn't found one she likes since coming to the village. Her old sword, a katana from her father, was snapped when she fled the Mist.

She sees Tsukiko as a close friend, and has a strong protective instinct with her team. You can see she's developed a few of Kisame's traits (like an irritation with Guy), just as Tsukiko has some of Itachi's. I think it works quite well. Itachi has Kisame, Sasuke has Suigetsu, and Tsukiko had Masuko. Everyone needs a sword-wielding friend from the Mist! And I noticed that I kept identifying her as "the former Mist ninja," which is not at all fair to her character. So, as the end implies, no more of that. She's a Leaf ninja through and through!

CHIYO MITSURU: Masuko's protege. Chiyo has an interesting family dynamic that will be revealed later, as I plan to have a chapter with Masuko training her for the third exam that will explain all. *ominous music plays* Let's just say that Gaara doesn't bother her because she's familiar with his type, and he reminds her of someone important. Anyway, she's more of a manipulator than a strategist, and is very good with people. This explains why she can so easily brush away her senseis' concerns, etc. She also has a lot of chakra, and Masuko's been teaching her how to store it. The chakra shell is the precursor to the armor, which Chiyo will hopefully master someday.

MIDORI HISOKA: During fights with the Sand, her family stole their Chakra Stitching (a technique I researched to see if it was even a thing. Imagine my surprise…) and mixed it with their own healing (green light stuff) to create a healing jutsu on the molecular level. The only ones more skilled in healing than her clan are Tsunade and eventually Sakura.

Midori, despite being able to get her threads down to the thickness of a wire, constantly beats herself up for not being better. In truth, healing is a challenge for her, and it is a source of despair to the poor girl that she's much better at hurting others, a thing she loathes above all else. Still, she's a skilled strategist, and has picked up A LOT from being so close to the Hyuga clan, whom her family has close ties with. She obviously can't see chakra points, but knows where many of them are, and with her unique branching threads...well, let's just say that she's going to be a danger someday. Her fight was a lot longer than Chiyo's, because Chiyo used force while she used her brain. My little sister (who reads these before I post) out loud said, "The jacket thing is stupid! She's using it as a towel?" Then a few paragraphs later. "Oh! Paper bomb! It was a trick!" which is exactly what I hoped you guys thought!

Please tell me what you think, as we're going to be getting into some pretty emotional stuff soon with the flashbacks, and of course, the best of the Chunin fights!


	13. Chapter 12

A.N. Okay, so this week is a little different. I work at a summer camp for a lot of the summer, so I really won't have a lot of time to write much. So, this chapter, and the next mini-chapter (yay! Double update!) are all I'm posting for the next three or four weeks. It's a good place to stop, as this chapter ends before Gaara VS Lee (which, while fun to watch, is HELL to write.) That said, I hope you guys enjoy!

Huge shoutout to Swagkage, the Youtuber I watch constantly to make sure that I understand the characters, powers, etc. I don't have time to reread/watch the whole series in preparation for this, so he's literally my saving grace, reminding me of limitations, hidden abilities, and helpfully creating VS videos and dissections that delve into fighting styles. Everyone should watch his videos!

* * *

Now:

"NARUTO UZUMAKI VS KIBA INUZUKA"

"This ought to be interesting," Tsukiko murmured.

And it most certainly was. Tsukiko wasn't quite sure when she'd begun to think Naruto was more of a prankster than a ninja. Perhaps it was Sasuke's constant complaining? At any rate, she found herself surprisingly impressed with the boy. He used clone jutsus and transformations very effectively to confuse Kiba, a loud ninja with an adorable dog named Akamaru. Kiba also used transformations, as well as ninja pills, but was unable to overcome Naruto's quick-thinking and fast ninjutsu. Of course, the young boy had some...unusual tricks of his sleeve, including a technique ("Uzumaki Barrage") that was an outright copy of Sasuke's "Lion's Barrage."

Still, he definitely earned his win.

Masuko whistled, shaking her head with a grin. "I don't see what everyone means when they say that kid's a screw up. Seems pretty strong to me."

"You never saw him at the academy, Masuko-Sensei," Chiyo said, her eyes wide. "The way he was then, I never thought he'd get this strong! He beat Kiba!"

Midori covered her mouth to smother a giggle. "Look how happy Hinata is!" She pointed to her friend, a cute girl with short violet hair and an overwhelming shyness, who was giving Naruto what looked like a tincture of medicine. The young Hyuga's cheeks were pink, and she seemed like she was about to run away any second.

"Aw," Masuko smiled, leaning on the railing. "What a cutie. I wonder who she'll have to fight. There's not a whole lot of guys left."

The blond genin glanced over at the Sand genin with concern. "I hope it's not that guy. He's scary."

Chiyo nodded, grinning. "Definitely. A real serious one, that guy. I wonder how strong he actually is."

Midori looked at her friend like she was crazy. "Don't go picking fights with everybody! Besides, it's Hinata we're talking about, not you. She's...a lot like me, so I'm worried."

Tsukiko glanced down at her in concern, and gestured to Masuko with her head.

The older Leaf kunoichi nodded, and tapped Midori's shoulder. "What do you mean, kiddo? She's a ninja, isn't she?"

The young genin looked away. "Yeah, but she hates fighting too. It's one of the reasons we got along so well."

Masuko bent down and placed both hands on the girl's shoulders. "Don't worry, Midori. You won your match, and she will too!"

"Maybe not," Chiyo muttered, looking up at the board. "Considering her opponent."

"HINATA HYUGA VS NEJI HYUGA"

Midori followed her friend's gaze and gasped, covering her mouth with both hands. "No! She can't fight Neji! Anyone but him!" Grabbing the railing, she watched, horrified, as the two Hyuga genin entered the arena.

"What's wrong?" Masuko looked at Tsukiko desperately. "Hey, no one's watching you right now. Help me out here! I don't understand all the fuss!"

Tsukiko crossed her arms as she studied Midori's panic. "All I know is that Hinata is from the main branch, and Neji from the side branch of the family. They're cousins, correct?" She tilted her head. "I've heard that the main branch of the Hyuga clan often takes advantage of the side branch, which has caused some tension. Is that what you're referring to?"

Midori nodded, taking a deep breath. "Neji has a lot of anger toward Hinata and the main branch. He used to be so nice...before…"

"Before what?" Masuko asked, scratching her head, completely lost.

"I think I have an idea of what this is about," Tsukiko nodded, her mind flashing back to the memory of her first mission. ' _A brother sacrificed to protect the clan. Yes, I imagine that would make someone hate the main branch…so that means the head of the Hyuga clan's brother was Neji's…'_

"Let the match begin!"

Neji, a boy with long brown hair in a loose ponytail and a stern demeanor, widened his stance, his expression unchanging. "Before we do this, a word of advice."

Hinata's head remained lowered until her cousin's voice became sharp. "Hinata, listen to me. Withdraw now."

Her head snapped up, her lilac eyes meeting Neji's. "You know you were never meant to be a shinobi," he continued, his words that of a concerned family member, but his tone meant to damage and inflict psychological pain. "You're too kind and gentle. You seek harmony and avoid conflict."

The boy nodded up at the catwalk. "You and Midori are alike in that respect, but she can at least fight well if it comes down to that. You cannot. You allow yourself to be easily swayed by others. Admit it, you have no confidence."

"That's enough, Neji!" Midori shouted angrily, startling Chiyo. "Don't talk to her like that!"

"Whoa now," Masuko cautioned. "It might be best if you didn't—"

"Why do you always try to make her feel like that?! Hinata may be gentle, but she has just as much right as you to call herself a shinobi!" Midori gripped the railing so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

"Midori." Masuko placed a hand on her shoulder. "This is Hinata's fight, not yours." Her quiet authority seemed to cut past Midori's anger, and the young genin quieted, through her eyes blazed with a highly uncharacteristic anger.

Tsukiko traded glances with the purple-haired shinobi. ' _Yikes. I've never seen her like this…'_

Neji also seemed surprised, though he met Midori's gaze calmly. "Listen to your sensei, Midori. This isn't your fight. If Hinata can't even defend herself, then what right does she have to be here, in these exams? The truth is, she feels inferior to everyone here."

He turned back to Hinata, who was wide-eyed and practically trembling. "It would've been better for you to simply remain a genin. But to register for the chunin exams, you need a team of three people." His voice became more accusatory. "You never even wanted to take part in these exams, but Shino and Kiba did, and you couldn't bear to let your teammates down, could you?"

"No!" Hinata finally spoke, her voice tinged with desperation. "You're wrong!" She shook her head. "I wanted—I had to find out! I did it because I wanted to see if I could change…"

There was a long moment of silence at these words. To want to change is a powerful wish, and an admirable one for a shinobi, whose life was so set in tradition and training.

Tsukiko smiled. "Well now, she's perhaps stronger than she looks…"

Neji, whose expression had softened slightly, hardened further. "Hinata, you're the pampered offspring of the Hyuga's main branch." He straightened and glared at her fiercely, his words hinting at a deep anger. "People can't change no matter how hard they try!"

Hinata gasped, nearly taking a step back.

"They can't run away from their true nature," Neji continued mercilessly. "A failure will always be a failure."

Sadness and regret flashed across Midori's face, and her grip loosened as her head lowered. "And no matter how strong, a side branch will never rise to the top of the tree," she muttered, obviously having heard a similar sentiment before.

' _I see…'_ Tsukiko studied the two Hyuga children closely. ' _Neji is definitely the stronger of the two, which is a failure on Hinata's part. But is he really talking about her? This level of anger...no, he's just taking it out on her…'_

"People are judged by their true nature." Neji's bitter voice spoke of experience. "It is the way of the world. That is why we have an elite, and why there are outcasts. We can change our physical appearance, improve our skills with training and study, but ultimately, we are judged by what we cannot change. What can't be changed, must be endured. We are who we are, Hinata. And we must live with it, just as I must live with the fact that you were born into the elite of our clan, while I am from a lesser branch."

Tsukiko's eyes softened with sympathy. "That kid. He's a little like me, or how I could have been…" Without Itachi, she would have been an outcast stuck in a clan that hated her, and might have easily become this jaded.

"I understand these things because I see the world clearly, with my Byakugan. Despite your brave words, what you're really thinking is that you'd like to run, run as far away from here as you can!"

"No! You're wrong!" Hinata insisted. "You're wrong about me!"

"Byakugan?" Sakura tilted her head. "What's that?"

Hearing this, Tsukiko gestured further down the catwalk. "Why don't we join Kakashi and Guy? I think Kakashi is about to give an explanation of the Byakugan. And Guy is Neji's teacher. This is your chance to learn about a possible opponent."

As they approached, Kakashi proved Tsukiko to be correct. "It's the kekkei genkai, or bloodline trait, of the Hyuga clan," he explained, answering Sakura. "A visual jutsu, like Sasuke's Sharingan. In fact, they say that the Uchiha clan's Sharingan was derived from the Byakugan, some time long ago."

Tsukiko nodded. "I've heard that too. As for my Gensogan, it's possible that it could be traced back to the Byakugan, but they're so different in use that it's doubtful."

"Yes, the Sharingan and Byakugan have many similarities," Kakashi agreed. "But for sheer power of insight, the Byakugan is the stronger of the two."

Down on the battlefield, Neji seemed to be through talking. He activated his Byakugan, a concentration of power in his eyes. Unlike the Sharingan or Gensogan, his eyes didn't change colors. Rather, the veins around and in his eyes seemed to pop grotesquely, creating an unnerving effect with the flat lilac of his eyes.

The followed was exactly as one might've expected. Hinata, due to some encouragement from Naruto and Midori, seemed to find her courage and refused to forfeit. Her stance was identical to Neji's, and she activated her own Byakugan. Still, the easy grace with which Neji held himself made it clear from the outset who the victor would be.

The two traded fast blows, familiar enough with the style to block and counter the other. Hinata actually managed to land a couple of hits, which would've been more than enough on a regular opponent.

"She barely touched him," Naruto commented with frustration.

Lee shook his head. "Even so, a glancing blow is enough. That is what makes the Hyuga clan the most formidable of fighters."

"What does?" Sakura asked, looking worriedly at the two fighters. "What are you talking about?"

Guy straightened. "Their Taijutsu is a unique one that's been passed down for generations." He held up a finger. "But it's not the Taijutsu that Lee and I employ, or anything that you will see from any other clan. We tend to concentrate on inflicting external damage. We use crushing blows to raise contusions and break limbs, pounding our enemy."

Masuko grinned, cracking her knuckles. "Sounds like my kind of fight."

Guy held up his other hand, continuing. "The Hyuga way is to attack an opponent's internal organs and the chakra network through which the chakra flows. Their way is more...subtle. Perhaps not at thrilling to watch, but it gradually takes effect, with devastating results."

"You see," Kakashi clarified. "You can't build up your internal organs, no matter how hard you train. Even the toughest ninja is vulnerable to this kind of attack."

Tsukiko gestured to herself. "Take me, for example. Because of the switching natures of my chakra, an attack like that is extremely effective. A couple of direct hits, and you could theoretically disable one or more of my Elemental Styles. Although," she paused. "I've never actually fought against a Hyuga…"

Down below, Hinata managed another hit to Neji's shoulder. The boy looked surprised, and struck back so quickly that Hinata just barely managed to dodge.

Midori bit her lip. "The blow Hinata landed didn't hit enough chakra points to slow Neji down." She watched them circle, clearly unsure how to feel.

Sakura shook her head in surprise. "They attack the chakra network? These people are amazing."

"Yeah, you could say that again," Naruto agreed. "So what is the chakra network anyway?"

"Don't you know anything?!"

"Here, I will explain it," Lee offered. "It is the complex system of circulatory canals that distribute chakra throughout the body. Similar to a person's vascular system, the veins and arteries that carry blood."

Naruto crossed his arms. "I get it. Only these veins carry chakra, not blood, right?"

"Uh, basically," Lee admitted. "Furthermore, the chakra network is so closely interwoven with all the most vital internal organs that they are virtually one and the same. Therefore, when the network is attacked, these organs suffer damage as well."

"Wow, Lee!" Naruto exclaimed, grinning. "How'd you ever get to be so smart?!"

"Idiot!" Sakura shouted, her expression fierce. "How'd you ever get to be a genin?!" She hit him on the head.

"Ow!"

Chiyo turned to Midori. "Say, isn't that kind of what you did, back there in the woods?"

Almost unwillingly, Midori pulled her gaze away from the fight. "Naruto, can I see your arm?"

"Huh? Oh, okay." Rolling up his sleeve, he held his hand out.

Concentrating on the revealed skin, Midori made a slashing motion, a faint flash of chakra visible at her fingertips, and Naruto's arm dropped limply to his side.

"Ow! What the—?! What did you do to me?!"

"My chakra threads hit your pressure points. It only worked so well since you were standing still. I normally don't get that many." She turned to Chiyo. "Is that what you meant?"

The dark-haired girl nodded. "Yeah! So are you hitting chakra points, or—"

Midori was already shaking her head. "Those are normal points were veins and arteries connect to the muscle. Hitting them can momentarily cause someone to lose feeling or control in that limb, as the blood is cut off." She leaned forward and gently took Naruto's arm, pushing a few places. "All you have to do is wait for the blood flow to restore itself, or you can help it along by pressing other spots to force the blood back to the hurt areas."

Naruto pulled back his arm, waving it around with a relieved expression. "I can move!"

"Chakra points are different," Midori continued, her teammate eagerly listening. "Like Lee said, most of them are around internal organs. I can't hit that deeply. I mean, I know where some of the points on the arms and legal are, but it's still really hard to hit. Especially as some people focus their chakra in different ways, meaning the locations of their weak points can also differ slightly."

She pointed to the fight. "See, Neji and Hinata are both attacking with their palms open. When they hit you, they actually send bursts of chakra through the system to attack the points around the organs, rendering as much damage as possible."

"Scary stuff," Masuko whistled. "Best to keep that kind of fighter at a distance, though I'll bet that would be tricky with an experienced Hyuga. We fought plenty of them in the Mist, but I can't say I've ever seen their abilities this close. Hitting chakra points, huh?" Her gaze was contemplative as she watched the two Hyugas.

Sakura crossed her arms and turned to Kakashi. "But Sensei, then how do they know where to hit their target? I mean, the chakra network is invisible to the eye, right? So how do they know exactly where to land their blows?"

"You're forgetting their Byakugan," he chided gently. "There are few things invisible to those eyes. And as Midori mentioned, they release a small burst of their own chakra from their hand. This chakra drills into an opponent's body, directly attacking his chakra network. The chakra points, about the size of a pin, can be used to halt or increase chakra flow, depending on how the attacker strikes. Theoretically, hitting them allows someone to control an enemy's chakra."

"But how do you know so much, Midori?" Naruto asked, cocking his head.

"Well, someone has to repair that damage, right?" Midori countered, turning back to the circling Hyugas. "Several of my family members serve as personal healers to the Hyugas, using our chakra stitching technique. It's the fastest way to heal internal organs, and you'd be surprised how often a simple training session can lead to severe injuries. For example—"

She cut off with a gasp as the two fighters lunged, hitting each other in the chest. They stood, frozen in time for a long moment, both having hit their opponent.

Then with a wet choking noise, Hinata spat out blood, her frame shaking.

"Damn it!"

"What's going on?! I saw Hinata hit Neji perfectly!"

"Oh no! Hinata!"

Tsukiko shook her head sadly. ' _Hinata is strong, but nowhere near Neji's level.'_

And the rest of the fight was what you'd expect. Hinata showed great bravery and determination, refusing to back down, but Neji met each of her attacks calmly, hitting her over and over, expressing that same idea that no matter how skilled someone was, they were bound by fate.

Still, Tsukiko was immensely impressed by the Hyuga heir's will to fight, to protect her nindo, despite her chakra flow being cut off. And equally impressed with Neji, who was far stronger than anything she'd expected to see here. Guy holding him back a year was starting to seem ridiculous. He was clearly already at a chunin level with his physical skills, although he had a clear mental hang-up that was holding him back. Bound by anger, and a sense of superiority while in an inferior position, Neji Hyuga was a complicated boy indeed.

' _Hm, strong as he is, I don't think even Sasuke stands a chance against him. Neji Hyuga will likely be the winner of the individual fights.'_ Her eyes narrowed, and she glanced down at her girls. ' _Although, I'll bet these two put up quite a fight. I wonder how much time they will receive to train…'_

Her thoughts were cut short by a final, devastating attack from Neji, slamming his fist into Hinata's stomach.

Midori covered her mouth to muffle a cry, her eyes tearing up. "She's—She can't fight anymore!"

The Hyuga girl's body fell forward, hitting the ground with a thud. She didn't get up.

"You just don't get it, do you?" Neji's voice was cold, despite the damage he'd just inflicted on a family member. "Your strikes were ineffective from the very start. You're finished." His Byakugan faded away.

"It's too bad, but after that blow to the heart, Hinata is done." Guy's quiet declaration rang true, as they waited for the official call, Masuko's hand resting on Midori's shaking shoulder.

Hayate walked into the arena, stopping next to Hinata. "As she can no longer continue this match—"

"NO!" Naruto's shout startled everyone, and all eyes immediately turned his way.

"Don't stop this match!"

"Naruto!" Sakura grabbed his arm. "What on earth are you doing?! Hinata's had it! You can see she's unconscious, can't you?"

But she wasn't.

Slowly, shakily, Hinata rose unsteadily to her feet, her breathing uneven.

"What do you think you're doing?" Neji asked, a faint tremor of concern in his voice. "If you continue to fight, you're going to die."

"No, Hinata!" Midori shouted. "You don't have to go all out like this!"

The girl's lilac eyes met Midori's green, and she smiled weakly. Then her gaze slid over to someone else. "I'm far from finished!"

The blond genin deflated, seemingly gaining insight into Hinata's reasoning. "Oh. I get it." Tears welling up, Midori nodded fiercely. "Okay, then!"

Tsukiko didn't quite follow the exchange, but didn't have time to come to an understanding. Hayate was signaling her to watch carefully, should they need to intervene. There was no way they could allow the Hyuga heir to die.

Neji reactivated his Byakugan, seeming genuinely angry now. "Give up the tough-guy act," he ordered. "I can tell you're barely standing. You've been carrying a very heavy burden, having been born to the main branch of the Hyuga clan. And you've cursed and blamed yourself for being weak." His tone softened. "But look, people can't change the way they are. That's just how it is. Just accept defeat and you won't have to suffer anymore!"

Hinata shook her head with a small smile. "No, you're wrong, brother," she said, using a friendly endearment. "You've got it backwards. You see, I can tell that you're the one—you're suffering much more than I."

"I'm what?" There was a quiet warning there.

The girl discarded it. "You are the one who's all torn up about the fate of the main and side branches of the Hyuga clan."

Something snapped then, inside the boy. His eyes narrowed, and he let out an angry growl.

"Hinata!" Midori's eyes were wide terror. "Neji, he—he's going to kill her!"

Tsukiko didn't bother to ask how Midori was so certain. She trusted her genin.

With a shout, boy rushed forward.

"Neji, no!" Hayate shouted. "The match is over!"

The boy didn't stop.

In an instant, Neji was surrounded on all sides. Hayate stood between him and Hinata, his finger pointed threateningly at Neji's forehead. Kakashi had a grip on the boy's right arm, extended to deal the killing blow. Guy's arm was loosely wrapped around his student's neck, and Kurenai gripped his left arm tightly. As for Tsukiko, she had pulled Hinata back by her fur coat, and was crouching protectively in front of her.

Perhaps most surprising was Midori, who had also rushed forward in the moment Neji had charged. She stood next to the jounin, her hands up in that peculiar way that marked her chakra threads, no doubt wrapping tightly around the Hyuga boy.

"Neji," Guy was the first to break the silence, his voice tight with warning. "Get ahold of yourself. You promised me you wouldn't let this whole head family thing get you riled up!"

"Why are you and the other jounin butting in?" Neji growled darkly. "The head family gets special treatment, huh?"

"Neji, please calm down," Midori stepped closer, her eyes sad. "You know that's not it. They just didn't want anyone to get killed."

His gaze flickered over to her, and while his bitter expression didn't change, his body slowly relaxed, the initial anger that drove him to attack draining away.

Behind her, Tsukiko heard Hinata cough up blood, the severity of her injuries finally catching up.

"Hinata!" Kurenai left Neji and caught the Hyuga heir before she fell. Naruto, Chiyo, Sakura, and Lee raced over to check on her before she fell unconscious.

Tsukiko kept her eye on Neji, who angrily pulled himself away from the jounin, Midori at his heels. She seemed to be trying to calm him down, her hand reaching up to touch his shoulder.

He jerked away, but Midori's face showed nothing but relief, too happy that Hinata was okay to be hurt by his rudeness.

Neji turned back to Naruto, who was crouched over Hinata's probe form. "Hey, loser."

' _Well, that got his attention.'_

"I have two pieces of advice for you. First of all, if you intend to call yourself a shinobi, stop that stupid cheering of yours. It's disgraceful. And second, once a failure, always a failure. You can't change that."

Naruto stood, smiling cockily. "We'll just see about that!"

Neji smirked.

And that was all it took to get the hot-blooded blond ninja charging. Luckily, Lee was quick to stop him, sliding swiftly between the two.

"What are you doing?!"

"Naruto, I get where you are coming from," Lee said peaceably, looking back over his shoulder at the blond. "Believe me. But the rules say, all fighting must be done officially in a match." He paused, staring intently at Neji. "The loser beating the gifted genius through sheer willpower—now would not that make for an exciting match, even if I am the one who is going to have to fight Neji?"

' _Oh, so Lee has a rival…'_

"Of course, if you ended up fighting him, that is fine too," Lee added quickly, glancing back.

Naruto snorted and turned away grumpily. "Alright, fine. You win, Lee." He shoved his hands in his pockets.

Lee smiled, and eagerly looked to his sensei, giving him a thumbs up. Guy returned it, his smile sparkling.

Tsukiko shook her head. ' _I don't even want to know what mental conversation that was.'_

"So that was Neji." Chiyo appeared next to her, an unreadable expression on her face. "I wonder if Midori will be alright. She seems to really admire him."

The young woman smiled. "Well, there's no harm in that. I imagine he has a soft spot for her. Childhood friends are like that."

"Yeah," Chiyo's voice was wistful. "You're right."

Tsukiko watched her student curiously, worry furrowing her brow. "Chiyo, is everything alr—"

"I wonder if Neji could beat that guy." Chiyo gazed up at the catwalk.

"The Sand genin? I don't know." Tsukiko cocked her head. "Why?"

The girl shrugged carelessly. "Just curiosity, ya know? He did some crazy stuff during the first exam. I got the sense that he's really strong."

"Hmm," Tsukiko gave no response, silently wondering herself.

"Hugyuk!" Hinata made a strangled choking noise, and her body began to convulse.

Kurenai quickly unzipped her jacket and felt her heartbeat. "She's going into cardiac arrest!"

Instantly, Midori left Neji and was at Hinata's side, her hands glowing green. "Somebody get a medic!" She shouted, eyes narrowed in concentration. Midori places her hands on Hinata's chest and winced. "There's a lot of damage," she whispered. "I don't know if I can help." Her jaw tightened. "Damn it."

"Easy there, kiddo," Masuko crouched next to her. "The medics will be here any moment. Just keep her breathing."

A few moments later, a medical team came in, and Midori pulled back, shaking. "Her pulse is very faint," she reported.

"Got it," the head medic said, doing his own examination. "It's very serious. She has ten minutes at best! We have to get her to the emergency room!"

Carefully, but quickly, they loaded Hinata into a stretcher and took her out of the room.

"Masuko-sensei, please let me go with them." Midori's voice was quiet, her head low. "I need to make sure they go get my dad, or one of the higher ranked healers in my clan. They'll know what to do."

"Of course." Masuko nodded, then jerked her thumb back at Neji. "Do I need to have a word with this kid?"

Midori shook her head quickly, a few tears falling to the ground. "It's fine. I don't—I don't think Neji would've actually killed her. We used to be pretty close, so I know he cares about her. This was just...emotions clouding judgement. He hit her too hard, that's all."

"You might be giving him too much credit," Masuko growled, her fang glinting threateningly. "But, for your sake, I'll go along with it."

Midori nodded, then rushed after her friend.

* * *

THEN:

"Well, go in."

At his father's urging, Itachi placed a hand on the closed sliding doors. On the other side of the spotless paper, the room was silent. And yet the intense aura there, in that room separated from him by a single sliding door, came through with such intensity that it practically prickled his skin.

' _An aura of unrest…'_ Itachi's heart sank. He shouldn't be here. Not without Tsukiko. He felt open and exposed, like something on the other side of that door was trying to tear him apart.

They had been training when his father had come for him, proudly telling him that he was now allowed to attend the clan meetings. Itachi had seen the hurt in Tsukiko's eyes that once again she was not included, that she was again abandoned.

'" _I'm not going without Tsukiko,"'_ he'd told his father plainly. And he'd meant it. He was tired of everyone treating her badly, when she was going to be a better shinobi than all of them anyway.

'" _Itachi, you know it's not my decision. Now come."'_ His father's voice had been stern, but something very much like pride had flashed in his eyes as he spoke.

The young boy opened his mouth to argue, but Tsukiko's hand gently landed on his shoulder. '" _It's okay, Itachi,"'_ she'd said, her bittersweet eyes dulled with acceptance. '" _This is really important. I want you to go. I can train here by myself for a while, it's no problem."'_ Then she smiled at him with such barely concealed sadness that he felt his heart clench at the sight.

His father had also seen it, and was not unaffected. '" _Let's go, Itachi,"'_ he repeated, his voice strained with subdued emotion.

But now, facing the hatred behind this door, Itachi had the momentary thought that perhaps it was better that Tsukiko not experience this. It was better for him to take on this aura alone.

"Itachi," his father pressed him.

With no other choice, the young boy opened the sliding door. The hall, fifteen or so tatami mats large, was filled to capacity. But because there was no light in the room, the figures were all silhouetted.

"Sorry to make you wait." Gesturing Itachi into the room, his father crossed the threshold, and then reached back to close the door.

The darkness grew even more concentrated. With no one shadow leading, several of the human forms stood up, and together lit the candles in the four corners of the room. A faint light illuminated the interior.

"Sit down there and listen." His father pointed to a seat in the very back of the room, the only open space on the floor jammed with people.

Itachi pushed through them to make his way to the designated position, and sat down quietly. His father watched his son get settled in, before stepping through the assembled group to sit at the front of the room, facing everyone.

"We'll now begin our regular meeting," Yashiro announced from beside his father. "Lord Fugaku's son, Itachi, will also be attending the meeting from now on."

"My son is seven," Fugaku said, sitting tall. "Although he has the genin status requires to take part in these meetings, he is still very much a novice. Due to my admittedly selfish desire to have him learn about the clan status from such a young age, he has been allowed to take part. I appreciate your understanding." He bowed his head.

In response, the clan members sitting before him bowed their heads simultaneously.

"Now then, to pick up where we left off last time, I'd like to discuss the issue of the submission of a written opinion to the Hokage, with regards to the segregation of the clan's compound." Yashiro had barely finished speaking before the people at the meeting all started talking at once.

Some insisted a show of force for Konoha, others said they should keep a calm eye on things and proceed amicably, and still others looked at the faces of those around them, unsure which opinion to agree with. Even though their purposes were all different, it seemed that everyone there wanted to actively participate in the conversation.

Abruptly, Itachi felt someone's eyes on him and immediately turned his own eyes in that direction.

' _Shisui.'_

He met Shisui's eyes. The older boy was silent, and seemed unaccustomed to the boisterous atmosphere of the place. Then his good friend smiled at him, and Itachi once again felt an indescribable sadness.

The clan's evil feelings hung heavy here. Itachi was also not accustomed to it.

' _I feel the same as you…'_ Itachi put his heart into the smile he flashed back at Shisui, thankful that at least Tsukiko wasn't being subjected to this poisonous atmosphere.

* * *

It was coming up on a year since they'd graduated from the academy. Itachi and Tsukiko turned eight.

Their careers as shinobi we're going smoothly. Their team hadn't been sent on any particularly difficult missions. Tsukiko had complained that, looking back on this year, their very first mission as genin, taking care of the Stone village spy, had been their hardest.

Itachi's relationship with his teammates was the same as always. Tenma still wouldn't accept him or Tsukiko, who he still seemed frightened of, and Shinko would flare up at his attitude. Yuki watched over them half in a panic, while Tsukiko usually broke up the fights. Itachi didn't do anything special, just stood there watching.

He thought it was a bit of an unnatural, warped team, especially compared with him and Tsukiko alone, but even so, do the same thing over and over for a year, and it becomes the norm. Even if they were still unable to really open up with each other, they somehow managed to execute their missions without a fuss, and Itachi was fine with that. Because he had no intention of hanging around for long.

With Tsukiko's help, he would pile on the achievements, rise up to chunin, then jounin, before becoming the best ninja in the world and eradicating all war. For that reason, Itachi couldn't stand still. Instead of spending any of his precious time worrying about his teammates or supervising jounin, he poured his heart into polishing his own skills, and that of his partner. So naturally, they had mastered their fighting style to the extent that missions went too smoothly.

If Itachi had one bone to pick, it would be that Yuki hadn't recommended him or Tsukiko for the Chunin Selection Exams that year. This was probably due to Tenka and Shinko not being at the level to take the Chunin Exams, and participation was based on a three-or-more person cell.

But still, Yuki hadn't even tried to plead his case. Itachi was confident that he and Tsukiko could breeze through the exams together, no third person needed. So, when he learned he was unable to take the exams, in an unusual move, Itachi pressed Yuki about it.

Normally, no matter what was said to him, Yuki didn't bother to react. Just this once, however, he pushed back against Itachi forcefully, even cutting off Tsukiko's more quiet approach. He insisted that it was simply impossible that year, with a look on his face that said he wasn't the least bit interested in what either genin had to say.

Itachi and Tsukiko had no choice but to drop the matter.

But even if they weren't allowed to take the exams, they could still be promoted directly to chunin if the village administration and the jounin recommended it. And looking at Team Two's results, it was immediately obvious just how much the two talented children contributed. It was a fact that either of their judgement had passed that of even their sensei, and Itachi had reached the highest levels in everything from ninja arts to fighting techniques, all of which had allowed him to rescue his team from danger any number of times.

And Tsukiko's control over her Gensogan was as near outright mastery as was possible at her age. She controlled each element with relative ease, Earth being the rare exception, though her stamina made it so that she could only use her powers for a short time. Her ability to act in tandem with his thoughts had grown to the point where the two rarely needed words to fight together, each implicitly trusting the other.

' _The administration will definitely say something…'_

This belief firm in his heart, Itachi pushed on with the mission before him each day.

* * *

"The lands have all relaxed now that the war is over, so travel between countries is much safer now. Which is why we can assign this sort of mission to a genin-centered team," Yuki explained, his eyes on the document in his hand.

Tsukiko had the same document, but she was content to lean on Itachi's shoulder and read off his paper. The mission this time was actually something interesting.

' _A mission to guard the daimyo of the Land of Fire.'_

The village of Konohagakure was within the territory of the Land of Fire, and the ruler of that land was the daimyo. But although the village was located in the Land of Fire, it functioned semi-autonomously, with an independent government structure that had the Hokage on top. On paper, the daimyo of the Land of Fire was ranked above the Hokage, but currently, the land's military might rested with the ninja of Konoha, so the relationship between the two was more like an alliance of equals than master and servant.

The daimyo visited Konoha annually. This regular event was extremely important for both sides, and had been faithfully held for several years, even during the Great War.

"So the five of us are going to guard him?" Tenma asked, looking at the document with excited eyes.

"Officially, yes, it will be us," Yuki agreed. "But behind the scenes, there will be four-person Anbu cell keeping an eye on things from the shadows. And before that even, the daimyo has his own Twelve Guardian Ninja, an independent corps made up of only the most skilled shinobi in the land."

"So we're like a formality, yeah?"

"Well, basically yes." Yuki traced the route they'd be taking on his map, holding it up to show the genin. "The roads are quite safe since the end of the Great War, so the team with the genin who distinguished themselves most during the year is selected to guard the daimyo. In other words, this assignment is a great honor."

Tenma and Shinko both turned their eyes to the two other members on their team. Tsukiko felt their eyes, but kept her gaze firmly on the document in Itachi's hand, knowing he was doing the same. The last thing she wanted was to give Tenma a reason to start yelling again.

' _Yuki-Sensei is useless,'_ she thought crossly, an uncharacteristic dislike for the man steadily growing. ' _He can't even control his own team._ I _break up more fights than he does, and he's not particularly strong either. We should just take the Chunin Exams and be done with this nonsense.'_

"We meet tomorrow morning at four. At the North Gate. Don't be late."

Tenma, Shinko, and Tsukiko assented aloud, but Itachi only nodded, still silent.

"All right then. Adjourned!" Yuki vanished, almost before he was done speaking.

Only the four genin remained.

Tenma's eyes never left the silent pair. "Guess you two are the village pets."

Irritation at their teacher flickered again in Tsukiko's mind. He couldn't be that brainless, as to think that there wouldn't be a fight the instant he left? Or did he just plan to leave it to Tsukiko?

Sure enough, his words sparked Shinko's temper. "You don't gotta go wording it like that!"

"Tch!" Tenma spit at the ground. "Yer attitude is just the worst!"

With her head still on Itachi's shoulder, she felt them move as a sigh threatened to spill out of him. Knowing that sighing would only make the problem worse, he held it in and motioned for Tsukiko to move before standing up more forcefully than normal.

"See you two tomorrow," he offered, glancing back at his older teammates.

Tsukiko bowed her head politely. "Have a good day." The words had no sooner left her lips than they had disappeared.

"They always act like they're all that." Tenma's grumbling reached her ears like an echo, and Tsukiko sighed.

* * *

A.N. Okay, so that's it for now. I'd like to take this time to thank a few of you personally. Jessielric, Arisu003, and amaya are the three commenters that I look forward to every week. They give me their thoughts on every chapter, which, honestly, gives me all my motivation. I've been writing for a while, but actually posting something was difficult, especially Naruto, which has a pretty strong fan base with a lot of even stronger opinions.

But to see Haunted on the front page of Quotev so often, and to hear people like Stormbutt tell me that no one puts effort into their stories, and that they like mine, is really humbling. Thank you guys SO much, and I'll see you next month.

Side note: I got a pretty cool story request for a long Fairy Tail reader x various Naruto insert that I will work on as a side project and post randomly. Still, it was my first request, so thank you kitty!

So, in this hiatus period, I'd like to open myself to oneshot requests that I can write quickly and actually post during the next month. I can't promise they'll come out in a timely manner, but you guys have given me a lot of your time, and I'd like to return the favor.

Have a nice summer!


	14. Chapter 12 Part 2

A.N. The only thing I'm going to say about this is that it was my favorite flashback to write (thus far) and I felt that it needed to be its own chapter, strictly from Itachi's point of view. Enjoy!

* * *

"I know I say this every year, but Konoha is so faaar," the old man said, sitting on a stump and staring at the teacup in his hand. A fan-shaped crown sat above his wrinkled face. A regular old man, simply fooling the world by clothing himself in gaudy finery.

The daimyo of the Land of Fire.

Behind the old man, a luxurious palanquin awaited its master's return. Around him were two of the Twelve Guardian Ninja, and a dozen or so attendants. And Itachi's Team Two, spread out in a loose circle.

A main road led from the capital of the Land of Fire to Konohagakure. They had already covered half the distance, and the village was just up ahead. Flat in and around the city, the road started to climb into the steepness of a mountain path. The new green of the woods hung over the heads of the party.

"It might be best if we hurry," Yuki said, ever so timidly. "Otherwise, we won't reach the village before nightfall."

In front of him, Itachi saw Tsukiko shake her head. To say she'd been disappointed with the daimyo was an understatement. He had none of the gentle wisdom, strength, or command that was present in their own Hokage. And she was exasperated with Yuki, the jounin currently bowing his head to the point of servility, humble before even the Twelve Guardians.

Itachi's hand tapped lightly against his leg, the only sign of his unease. They were not in their proper positions. Tsukiko was always supposed to be with him or behind him, the defense to his offense. But Yuki, in an effort to impress the daimyo, has wanted Tsukiko up at the front with him, her Gensogan leading the way. The other three genin were left to guard the sides and back of the palanquin.

It was slowly becoming obvious exactly how incompetent his sensei was. Anyone with an inkling of strategy would want Tsukiko near the back, her Gensogan hidden until she could surprise the enemy. Instead she was paraded around in front, her eyes switching colors for anyone to see. Yuki has instructed her to keep changing chakras, giving a half-thought excuse of intimidation. But it was quickly draining Tsukiko of chakra that she might need, impressive as it looked.

The daimyo has certainly been intrigued, and continued to take notice whenever Tsukiko looked back at Itachi, worry etched on her features. The old man had even loudly mused that she might someday make a good guard for him, to which she had bowed politely.

Itachi scoffed. She wasn't anyone's guard, she was _his partner._ If she didn't want to leave him, then nothing would make her go. He had that faith in her.

"Alright…" the daimyo sighed, finally taking Yuki's advice. He slowly lifted his bulk up, the enormous fan-shaped crown on his head rocking. The two Guardian Ninja watching over him each took one of his arms.

Tsukiko stiffened, something on the road ahead catching her attention as she widened her stance defensively. Her movement was instantly noted by Itachi, whose eyes followed her gaze.

"Minazuki-Sensei," he warned, staring at the road ahead as he listened to the exchange between the daimyo and his men.

"What?" The instant Yuki let his eyes chase his genins' gazes to the road ahead, his previous looseness vanished, and his face grew grim. At the change on their teammates, Tenma and Shinko stiffened as well.

"The daimyo," Yuki warned the Guardian Ninja.

The two grabbed the old man from either side and lifted him into the palanquin. The five members of Team Two stepped out in front of the daimyo's party and spread out in an arrow formation, with Yuki at the tip.

Itachi wanted to sigh with frustration. Though he was much closer now, Tsukiko was still in front of him, where their usual teamwork was hindered. There was no time to worry about the consequences now, though.

In the distance, a man was approaching. He was walking with a jaunty step, practically bouncing off the ground. Nothing suspicious about this. So then, why were all five of them uniformly on guard?

The reason was the man's face, which was hidden behind a bizarre mask. The surface was painted a burnt orange with horizontal black stripes at uneven intervals. A jet-black hollow around the right eye allowed the man to see. On his body, he wore a long black coat with an open collar that reached below the knee, loosely tied with a thick white bandage. His appearance was reminiscent of a clown. He was not a ninja.

But Itachi's instincts were telling him there was something ominous about this man. He knew Tsukiko felt the same, from the stiffness in her shoulders and her clenched fists. Their nervous tension was communicated to their three teammates, setting them on edge as well.

"Hey are we all right?" One of the Guardian Ninja asked from behind.

"We're just going to check this out," Yuki replied grimly. "Wait there."

The masked man moved lazily forward during this exchange, and then threw his right hand into the air when he was a few feet away from Yuki. "Umm, I have a question I'd like to ask, if you don't mind?" He sounded extremely drowsy, his voice high-pitched and childish.

Yuki unconsciously smiled broadly at the anti climatic nature of the man's tone. "This road is closed today. How did you get onto it?"

"Oh, it is, then?" The man spread out both arms in an exaggerated fashion, his wild movement drawing all eyes to him.

The air shook.

Itachi felt a subtle disturbance in his chakra. "Minazuki-Sensei!" He shouted, but he was too late.

Genjutsu.

Itachi immediately dropped down into a defensive posture, while before his eyes, Yuki was frozen in place, standing rigidly straight. Through his skin, Itachi felt the people behind him freezing as well. The daimyo, his close aides, and the two Guardian Ninja had also been caught in the genjutsu.

Tsukiko was crouched in front of him, her eyes wide and spinning when she glanced back to see if he was okay. Itachi wanted to berate her for taking her eyes off the enemy, but relief that she was unfrozen sealed his mouth.

"Oh ho, that there would be anyone who could dodge my genjutsu, hm?" In a flash, the voice of the buffoon of only moments ago was brimming with intelligence. The hole in the mask seized on the two children. "And that three of you managed it…"

Itachi's breath caught at the fact that someone else had managed to avoid the genjutsu. And then he felt a chakra and aura racing up on him. Something was squirming beside him.

"What did you do?!" An angry voice cried out.

Tenma.

Before he knew it, his teammate was charging at the man. As he ran past, Tenma glanced at Itachi. "My specialty is genjutsu. You can't get me with a technique like this!"

"A technique like this. Oh, well said," the man murmured.

' _He's laughing…'_ That's how it looked to Itachi.

"Tenma, stop!" Tsukiko cried out, trying in vain to grab the older boy's clothes as he passed by. "That guy is dangerous!" Her voice was shaking slightly, fear evident.

"Tenma!" Itachi also called out to stop him. "We need to look carefully and calmly at our—"

Tenma thrust a kunai into the throat of the masked man, who continued speaking, his voice almost gentle and chiding.

"A ninja who cannot objectively assess a situation…"

"Wh-What's happening?!" Tenma asked, sounding terrified. And for good reason.

His arm had been sucked into the man's throat and shot out the back of his head. At first glance, it looked like his fist had smashed through the man's head, but the man didn't look the slightest bit uncomfortable, and not a drop of blood was spilled. Tenma's arm had passed right through the man's body.

"...will die."

"Heenyah!" Tenma made a sound so strange, it was hard to believe it came from a human being. His body flew up into the air, his strangled cry seemingly echoing in Itachi's ears. The reason for his flying back was the man's arm, which pierced Tenma's body and lifted him up.

This time, it was no illusion. As proof, fresh blood gushed from the boy's torso, flowing to the ground like a waterfall. Tenma convulsed in tiny seizures, but gradually grew quieter, until he finally stopped moving completely.

"Those who would rush forward, recklessly seeking distinction, die young. That is the reality of the world of ninja." The man looked at Tenma's eyes, focusing on an empty spot in the sky now. "But it's already too late to teach you that, hmm?" The man's voice, though deep and powerful, was still that of a teacher lecturing a student.

He forcefully shook the arm that penetrated Tenma, and the corpse slid off and hit the ground.

"Of course, you did not fall, hm?" The hollow in the mask turned to Itachi. "And you did not foolishly charge like this child, but attempted to coolly assess both your power and mine. Wonderful, Itachi Uchiha."

"How do you know my name…?" The question left him before he could stop it.

"I expect that I know everything about the Uchihas," he answered casually, his gaze sliding over. "But the same cannot be said for the Amaya clan."

Tsukiko's eyes were firmly fixed on Tenma's body, her gaze far away. Still, sensing that she was under scrutiny, she met the man's gaze unflinchingly, her jaw tight with anger.

"Such spirit," the man murmured, his voice sliding over the two children. "I imagine you've seen horrible things in your time, Tsukiko Amaya. But do you wish to die here?"

Her body froze, and Itachi realized with something very close to panic that she was closer to the man than he was. She was the closest target.

The masked man's bouncing was replaced by a no-nonsense step as he moved toward her. He walked very much like a ninja now. Slow and purposeful, like he had all the time in the world. "My objective is that old man's life. If you sit and watch quietly, I will spare the two of you."

Time seemed to slow as he approached the frozen Tsukiko, the weight and pressure of his presence increasing as he drew near.

Itachi's hand shot forward of its own accord, acting completely on instinct.

The masked man paused, as if anticipating an attack, the intense feeling of his chakra rising further.

The young boy latched onto Tsukiko's wrist with a bruising hold, wrenching her behind him forcefully. Caught off-guard, she fell to her knees, her paralysis broken by the sudden pain in her wrist and cuts on her legs.

"Oh ho," the man relaxed, sounding amused as he continued walking. "Perhaps not so calmly and coolly as I'd thought, Itachi."

"I am a ninja of Konoha—" Itachi felt a pressure like he was being choked, but he desperately forced his throat open enough to spit out the words.

Now that Tsukiko was behind him, safe, he felt like a frog under the watchful eye of a snake. His body wouldn't move the way he wanted it to, frozen just as Tsukiko had been. Perhaps because of the man's wordless pressure, focused on the closest target. Perhaps his instincts, sensing the difference between his own abilities and those of the man, refused to let him fight. Or perhaps all the blood in his body had collected in his head, as his brain frantically tried to analyze the inexplicable phenomenon that was that man's body.

Whatever it was, the fact remained that he could not move.

' _I can't come up with a clear solution to a situation I've been put in.'_

This was the first time in his life anything like this had ever happened to him.

The masked man come up beside him. On his approach to the daimyo, it felt like he stopped next to Itachi. "Could you say what you said one more time?" The man cocked his head to one side.

"I am a ninja of Konoha," Itachi said, hoarsely.

"Does that indicate that you wish to die?"

From behind him came Tsukiko's sharp intake of breath, and the sounds of her rising to her feet.

' _No, Tsukiko!'_ Itachi's fingers twitched.

"You can become a good ninja. There's no need for you to rush to your death here. Still if you say you wish to die, then I won't try to stop you."

' _Move,'_ Itachi ordered his body. ' _Move before she dies!'_

"Ngh!" As the half-groan escaped him, Itachi managed to move just his right arm. He punched at the mask with his right hand, bereft of even a kunai.

Just like Tenma, his fist slipped through the face, and came flying out the back of the man's head. He was sure the man was standing there before him , but no sensation of touch was communicated to his brain. That fear that he had already fallen prey to the man's genjutsu grew in Itachi's heart.

"I see. So you wish to die." The man brought his arm toward Itachi and swung it downward.

He briefly registered a blistering heat behind him, reaching over his shoulder, but his attention was completely on the the palm stopped inches away from his face.

The man looked up toward the sky, blotted by the thick canopy above. "That chakra," he said softly. "Kakashi Hatake."

The man turned his face back down toward Itachi, not at all perturbed by the flaming fist pointed up at him from over Itachi's shoulder. Tsukiko had forced herself to move at the last instant, rushing forward in a desperate attempt to block the blow that never came.

"A narrow escape for you, Itachi Uchiha."

' _The mask's shaking.'_ Itachi no sooner had this thought than something incredible happened.

The man was sucked into the hole in his mask. Before Itachi's eyes, the black body concentrated on a single point and was swallowed up by empty space, like water in the bath after the plug is pulled out, until finally, even the whole in the mask disappeared.

Itachi felt Tsukiko's shaking body pressed against his back as she collapsed, her head and outstretched arm falling limply on his shoulder. Her breaths came out in uneven gasps, and he dimly registered the tears streaming down her face, staining his shirt while she weakly gripped him.

He stood there, dumbfounded, as four figures dropped down from the sky above. They wore animal masks. Anbu, an elite group under the direct control of the Hokage.

"Are you alright?!" The shortest of the four, a boy with gray hair in a fox mask, shook Itachi out of his state by placing a hand on Tsukiko's back. "Is she hurt? What happened?!"

The younger boy turned to wrap an arm around Tsukiko, letting her lean against him as she continued shaking, her eyes staring vacantly. He said nothing to the boy, his eyes searching Tsukiko for wounds. His eyes kept returning to her wrist, bruised with his fingerprints.

The other three Anbu were going around releasing the daimyo and the others from the genjutsu. As he woke, the daimyo spotted Tenma's body and shrieked.

"Everyone but me was suddenly hit with a genjutsu, and it took a while to release them all," the older boy explained apologetically. "Sorry we're late."

Itachi stared dully at the fox-mask boy. "Kakashi Hatake…"

"How do you know that name?" The boy asked sharply.

And Itachi instinctively knew that the boy in front of him was Kakashi.

* * *

Even with the warmth of the blanket wrapped around his body, he couldn't stop shaking. The man's attack felt like a memory of a distant day, but it had only happened a few hours earlier.

Given the urgent nature of the situation, the daimyo's visit was postponed, and he returned that day to the Land of Fire. After hearing reports from the Anbu and Yuki, the Hokage and the other village officials decided to have Itachi and Tsukiko debriefed in a few days. They were sent home immediately after they returned to the village.

Tsukiko's grip on him tightened, and he pulled her closer, one arm around her waist and the other on her shoulders. He was leaning against the wall of their room, with her sitting between his legs, her head buried in his shoulder.

After returning home, they didn't feel like doing anything. Neither child could even muster an interest in eating supper, and had retreated to their room, despite the early hour. Even Sasuke was still awake. They'd huddled in a corner, Tsukiko silently clinging to him, afraid to let go.

Itachi felt the same way. The sense that he could have lost her today made him want to hold onto her tightly, to make sure she was really still there with him. They were still children, after all. So they just sat in the dark, wrapped in blankets, enduring the incessant shaking that plagued them both.

In his heart was a disappointment with himself.

Tenma died. Right in front of him. And he hadn't even tried to save him. Or rather, he _hadn't_ been able to save him.

He hadn't been able to do anything.

Not even to help Tsukiko. If the man had seriously gone for her, she would be dead. The only thing he had accomplished was bruising her.

"Are the children alright?" He heard his father's voice from the other side of the sliding doors as the man arrived home.

Tsukiko lifted her head, wanting to hear the response. Itachi moved the blanket slightly, allowing her free movement, despite his instinct to curl around her tighter.

"Neither of them ate. They're still laying down in their room." His mother's voice.

"They're ninjas now. Teammates sometimes die in front of you." Despite the harsh words, there was a deep weariness to his father's voice.

"But Itachi and Tsukiko are still only eight. They should really still be playing at the academy with their friends."

"A testament to their talents. It's precisely because those two attracted the attention of the people on the village that they were assigned the mission of guarding the daimyo. And precisely because it was an important mission, it carried an element of danger. Living through carnage time and time again is how a ninja grows up."

His father's words pushed through the warmth of the blankets and pierced Itachi's heart, to the point where he finally allowed his forehead to rest on Tsukiko's shoulder, needing something to ground him.

' _Still green.'_

He was lacking. He was lacking, and so his teammate died. He was lacking, and so he'd hurt Tsukiko. His father was saying all of this because he was not good enough yet.

He wanted more power. Enough to defeat that man. Enough to protect Tsukiko.

"Can't you get him into the Military Police, and have him working under you? I know they won't want Tsukiko there, but maybe you could—"

"They won't be joining the Military Police." His father's words dig further into his heart. "I'm thinking about their futures here. They need to keep working hard as genin right now.

"But Itachi's just—"

Fugaku interrupted Mikoto sharply. "It's fine. I'm sure he'll get over it."

Itachi buried his head deeper into Tsukiko's shoulder, allowing the blankets to fall over him in an attempt to escape the sound of his father's voice. She ran her fingers through his hair, her trembling slowing as she comforted him. She hummed some nonsense song as she vainly tried to drown out Fugaku's painful words.

"He's an Uchiha, after all. And Tsukiko's a Gensogan user. They're stronger than that."

"Nnngh!" Emotions he couldn't suppress became a groan of anguish and forced its way out of him. His body shivered and shook, hot tears streaming from his tightly closed eyes as he curled himself as tightly as he could around Tsukiko, trying to hold back the childish sobs that wanted to escape.

Itachi wasn't shaking because he was afraid. Anger at his own useless self rocked his body. A sense of helplessness, defeat, emptiness, disappointment. He shook with these waves of emotion, turned inward to race through his body.

"Itachi?"

Tsukiko's worries questioning sounded far away. He wanted power. He didn't have enough power to protect his teammates. Nor enough to put his father's mind at ease.

' _More. More…'_

He would go beyond even that masked man. No, he would have the power to go beyond anyone and everyone in this world. And then, he would grab onto the root of all fighting with his own hands.

Itachi felt something hot beneath his tightly closed eyelids. Not tears. Something hotter than that.

 _Throb._

He felt a pounding at the nape of his neck, and faintly heard Tsukiko whisper that he was burning up. Something like fire shot through his body and concentrated around the pounding, before pouring into his eyes.

Itachi finally realized that the source of this blazing power was chakra.

Those born into the Uchiha clan were cloaked in a chakra with fire attributes. But he had never before on his life experienced this kind of heat from his energy. Still, he managed to coolly assess what was occurring within his own body.

Tsukiko pulled away, taking the blankets with her as she tried to figure out why Itachi's body had heated up so much so suddenly. "Itachi? Are you okay?"

The young boy raised his head at the sound of her tearful voice, before gradually opening his eyes.

' _Awakening.'_

The world was colored red. Everything was different from the scene of only moments ago. On the other side of the sliding door, three flames of different sizes flickered. The lives of his father, mother, and Sasuke.

And next to him, another flame. Tsukiko.

He focused his attention on the three flames. The sliding door faded, and he clearly saw the neighboring room. Three people lived in this red world. If he squinted and concentrated, he felt like he would even be able to see their hearts beating.

Tsukiko's hand brushed his cheek, and he turned to her, pulling back his view to see her features. The awe in her eyes and the brightness of her smile rivaled that of the flames he could see inside her. "The Sharingan," she whispered, staring into his red eyes intently. Her face was only a few inches away now, and Itachi felt another type of heat in his face.

' _I'm dizzy…'_

He was wasting chakra, and more than he expected if he was this lightheaded. Itachi closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he slowly opened his lids again, the world had returned to normal.

For a split second, anyway. Then his view was completely blocked by Tsukiko hugging him tightly whispering words of praise and delight, speaking softly so as to not alert his parents.

She had not simply overcome her previous feelings of loss and sorrow, but rather, her excitement at seeing Itachi activate his Sharingan for the first time had overwhelmed all the negative feelings. It was tangible proof of their growth, and proof that he was getting stronger and stronger. And that made her hopeful.

Itachi held her tightly, the dizziness not fading, and remembered the masked man. Itachi had been close enough to see an eye on the other side of that small hole in the bizarre mask and clearly remembered three magatama floating in that red iris.

"You won't beat me next time," Itachi murmured, as red colored his eyes once more.


	15. Chapter 13

A.N. Hey guys! It's been a while, but I have a new update for you, and it's quite lengthy, due to the fact that we crossed 200 hearts while I was MIA! Thank you guys so much! I still have two more weeks to work, so it might be three before another update, but you guys deserve this! Thank you for all the support and awesome comments!

Without further ado, LEE VS GAARA!

* * *

NOW:

After a brief intermission, everyone was back on the catwalk and awaiting the next match. Masuko, Kakashi, Guy, and their teams stayed in a big group, while the other genin remained in their own teams. There were only two matches left, and a tension in the air.

Tsukiko stood by the catwalk stairs, carefully watching the Hokage. An Anbu ninja, likely bringing news that Hinata had made it safely to the emergency room, had appeared and reappeared just as quick. Still, she wanted to make sure that the message had nothing to do with Sasuke. The instant he was in trouble, she'd drop everything, orders be damned. Kakashi had planted a seed of doubt in her mind, a sense that, unless she acted quickly, she would lose Sasuke to his hatred.

"Now you're talking! All you can eat! Bring it oooooon!"

Startled by the loud and, well, _weird_ shout, Tsukiko leaned forward on the railing, craning her neck to see who had spoken. A boy from Asuma's team, the one who'd been snacking this whole time.

' _Asuma must've said_ something _to fire him up like that.'_ In all honesty, Tsukiko was interested to see him fight as well. There had been so many unique abilities displayed today, and it was making her antsy, like she needed to train as well.

Flexing her fingers, Tsukiko crossed her arms to stop her fidgeting, but found that she couldn't keep still. Something was making her senses go on high alert, but it was difficult to pinpoint. She was already so stressed, that it could've been any number of things.

Naruto walked over to her side, leaving the group. "Hey, you're some kind of special Proctor, right?"

Tsukiko watched him cautiously. "Yes, I am." He'd been instructed to act as if he didn't know her, but Naruto wasn't exactly known for following directions.

"Can't you do something to make sure I fight Neji in the third exam?" The boy was deadly serious as he clenched his fist. "I have to beat him, for Hinata!"

Tsukiko smiled at his earnestness. "Unfortunately, that would be cheating. But—" she continued, seeing his expression fall. "I'll have a word with Hayate about it. They usually design these things to show off the genin as much as possible. It's not random, like these." She gestured to the computer. "The proctors will make a point of pairing certain people together, so it's not impossible that you'd be paired with Neji in the beginning."

He nodded crossing his arms. "Yeah, okay. I guess that makes sense."

Movement from across the arena caught her attention. Kankuro, the puppet user from the Sand, was making his way toward her. But more importantly, it brought her attention back to what she'd been sensing.

' _Bloodlust.'_ That's what was making her edgy. The red-haired ninja was practically radiating with it, though he seemed calm enough. No wonder his teammate was leaving. He probably needed a breather, being so close to that level of hidden anger.

"Yo!" He called, his voice cheery as he made his way up the steps. "How come you're all by yourself?"

Tsukiko raised an eyebrow. He was clearly talking to Naruto, who was standing right next to her. Not exactly alone.

"Why aren't you hanging with your buddies?"

' _Ah,'_ Tsukiko hid a grin as she casually stepped back. ' _He picked Naruto out because he was talking to me. Trying to learn something, are we?'_

"What's is to you?" Naruto said grumpily. "I was just talking to Tsukiko-Sensei."

On cue, Kankuro's friendly attitude was directed at her. "Right, you're one of the proctors."

"I am," Tsukiko replied, smiling. "Can I help you with anything? Naruto was asking about how the third exam chooses it's matches, if you're curious."

Caught off-guard by her open admission, the Sand genin stumbled over himself for a moment. "Ah, well, I think Baki-Sensei had a question for you. He was confused as to why there was a special proctor in the first place."

"I see." Tsukiko nodded, keeping her bright smile. "Well, I don't want to be rude, so I'd better answer him myself."

' _Plus, I'm very curious as to why you want Naruto alone.'_ He'd probably singled Naruto out as a hothead and was going to try to get some information out of him. What exactly that was, Tsukiko was very interested in.

"Right. Good thinking." Kankuro seemed surprised, but pleased that she'd gone along with what he'd obviously been hoping for.

Obligingly, Tsukiko used her Body Flicker technique to disappear and reappear on the opposite catwalk. As expected, the bloodlust was nearly tangible. Not pleasant, to say the least.

Forcing her smile to stay put, Tsukiko made her way to the Sand shinobi, who seemed mildly surprised at her appearance.

"Kankuro said you had a question for me?" She asked the sensei, a man with half his face covered by a hanging piece of cloth.

To his credit, there was no hesitation in his reply. "Yes, I was wondering what exactly your job is. Apparently you've been at all the exams so far, and have been introduced as a special proctor. The Leaf has never had that position before, so I was curious as to the change." While not exactly friendly, the stern man was at least polite, though there was an underlying suspicion in his tone.

Tsukiko remained cheerful and friendly, her body language open and honest. "Well, despite how it looks, these exams were actually supposed to be quite a challenge. I was here to make sure there were no unnecessary deaths." She shrugged. "Seems like everything went better than expected, so I'm more of a spectator now. But," she paused, producing a clipboard with the genin files. "Lord Hokage did ask me to check that our files are correct. We have several prominent guests coming, and want to make sure the pamphlets have all the information you want printed."

She pointed at the other catwalk. "That's why I spent so much time mingling with the Leaf genin. We, obviously, have far more data on them than anyone else, so I wanted to get them out of the way. But, now that I'm here, might as well check the Sand and Sound."

Turning her head, she grinned brightly at the remaining Sound genin. "It seems I missed your sensei. Could you do me a favor and tell him that I'd like a word the next time you see him? There are several things I'd love to talk about."

The Sound genin, a boy wrapped in bandages with a furry thing on his back, nodded slowly, slightly disturbed by something in the smiling woman's voice. He'd somehow got the sense that he'd been threatened, but the woman showed no sign of malice as she turned back to the Sand.

"I just need you to verify that these are correct, and let me know if there is any additional information you'd like to be added about your genin." She handed the three forms to the Sand jounin, and turned to the genin.

The girl, Temari, was watching her with suspicion, while the red-haired boy ignored her completely.

"Congrats on breaking the record for the Second Exam," Tsukiko offered as an icebreaker.

"Thanks," Temari said shortly.

Tsukiko grinned and shrugged, not at all put out.

From down in the arena, Hayate spoke up, having seen to it that any blood was cleared away. "Now then, we'll continue the competition."

The screen flickered, flashing through the remaining names.

"ROCK LEE VS GAARA"

Instantly, almost before the screen had picked his opponent, the red-haired boy, Gaara, was swept up in a tornado of sand. Tsukiko shielded her eyes instinctively from the tiny grains as they lifted the boy and brought him down to the arena. He glared up at the catwalk where the Leaf genin stood.

"Well, come on," his raspy voice said impatiently. "Let's do this."

"YEAAAAAAAH!" The boy on Asuma's team shouted. "Safe again!" He threw his arms out like an umpire. His teammates immediately started lecturing them.

Lee, meanwhile, was punching and kicking the air, obviously fired up. Guy leaned down to tell him something, and then had to stop him from writing it down.

"Oh, boy," Tsukiko sighed. "Those two." She was slightly disappointed that she was on the wrong side for this match, but perhaps it was better. She could gauge the Sand and Sound based on their reactions to this fight.

Guy gave Lee a thumbs up, and the Leaf genin leapt off the catwalk, landing lightly about twenty feet away from his opponent.

"I knew that sooner or later, we would have to meet," he said, taking his stance. "I am glad it is sooner."

"So, do you think Gaara will be a match for Lee?" Tsukiko asked casually, making a note on her board. "He's quite talented, you know."

Temari put her hands on her hips. "He's fast alright, but his kick isn't that great. There's no way Gaara will lose."

Tsukiko raised an eyebrow at the girl's insolent tone. "I see."

The cork of Gaara's gourd shot off, but Lee caught it easily. "Why are you in such a hurry?"

Gaara said nothing, but his bloodlust was answer enough.

"All right then," Hayate raised his arm. "If you are both ready, begin." He flicked his hand downward.

Lee shot forward, his initial Leaf Hurricane kick blocked by a wall of sand that erupted from the gourd. He had to backflip out of range as the sand grabbed for him, skidding to a halt.

"Fascinating…" Tsukiko murmured. "He can control it so easily." She actually felt a flicker of jealousy, but it was lost in how impressed she was that this boy could wield the sand without moving a finger.

The Leaf genin moved quickly, kicking and striking at Gaara, but the Sand blocked his every move. Even using a kunai, Lee couldn't get close. And when the sand went on the attack, he was forced to retreat or be crushed.

"He's not controlling it," Temari corrected smugly. "The sand is protecting him on its own."

"What do you mean?" Tsukiko questioned, glancing back down at the fight.

"The sand is almost living. It automatically comes to Gaara's defense without him doing anything. Never in his life has he been injured, and he never will be."

Baki gave Temari a warning look, but she brushed it off.

"No one can even touch him."

Tsukiko frowned, troubled. ' _That's actually really sad,'_ she thought, her eyes following Lee as he raced around, trying to find an opening. ' _If he's never been hurt, or even touched, then he probably has no sense of pain, which probably stunted him emotionally.'_ Landing back on Gaara, her gaze softened. ' _Poor kid.'_

"Well, is that all?" Gaara's voice, somehow loud despite its soft quality, was full of impatience. "I hope you haven't finished entertaining me. We haven't had enough blood."

With that terrifying statement, his sand latched onto Lee's leg and sent him flying into a wall. Lee dodged the next attack, and returned to attacking the sand around Gaara head-on.

' _Why isn't he using—'_ Tsukiko's eyes widened, and she remembered a conversation she had with Guy a little over a year ago, when she was expressing her frustration at not being a sensei, and he made her laugh with stories of one of his pupils, one who could only use Taijutsu.

' _Was that...Lee?'_ It made sense. Guy had spoken of his pupil with almost fatherly pride as he bragged about the boy's accomplishments, and it was obvious that Lee admired the older male with every fiber of his being.

Reabsorbing this knowledge, Tsukiko was returned to the fight by the sight of Lee flying through the air, landing atop the statue of two hands clasped together.

"All right, Lee!" Guy shouted to get his attention. "Take 'em off!"

"Uh, but Guy-Sensei, you said that was only as a last resort, when the lives of very important people were at stake!"

"That's right, I did!" Guy gave him a thumbs-up. "But this is an exception."

Lee's whole face lit up. "Really? Really?!" He sat down and pulled down his bright orange leg warmers, revealing—

"Leg weights?" Tsukiko wondered aloud. ' _That's a little old school…'_

The Leaf genin stood, a set of weights in each hand. "Ah! That is better!" He exclaimed. "Now I will be able to move freely!" He dropped them.

"Come on," Temari muttered, scoffing. "You really think you'll be able to get through Gaara's defenses just by dropping a couple of pounds of weight?"

The floor of the arena exploded, the force of the weights falling sending up dust and rubble around where they landed.

Tsukiko facepalmed while the people next to her and across the catwalk let out shocked exclamations. "Really, Guy?" She sighed, rubbing her temples. "You are ridiculous sometimes."

Across the arena, she saw Masuko practically bouncing with excitement. "Hell yeah! That's it! Girls, we're getting ankle weights first thing tomorrow!"

The younger woman sighed again.

"All right, now go!" Guy ordered.

"Yes sir!"

Lee bounced forward so fast, he was just a green blur. His fist slammed through the sand surrounding Gaara, not hitting him, but breaking through.

Gaara turned, his "arms crossed pose" broken for the first time in this fight. Surprise was written all over his face as he flinched away from the fist.

But just as soon as that blow missed, Lee was kicking and punching all around the Sand genin, his movements just barely deflected by the sand each time.

Gaara could barely keep up, his eyes and head moving to watch Lee's movements. Lee took advantage of this and leapt up, bringing his heel down to slam into the red-haired boy's head.

"I don't believe it!" Temari exclaimed, gripping the railing. "Gaara's been hurt!"

"Careful, Lee!" Chiyo's voice was concerned as she watched Gaara raise his head, a dark scratch visible. "He'll get more and more dangerous the angrier he gets!"

Tsukiko's attention diverted to her student, noticing that she was watching Gaara closely, her expression worried. Masuko leaned over and said something, but she just smiled and brushed it away, her eyes not leaving the fight.

"Yes, Lee! Let the power of youth explode!" Guy's overdramatic praise lit a fire in the young shinobi, and his eyes filled with determination.

"Rrrrrrrrrright!"

He charged again.

Gaara stepped back, pulling his arm up sharply to direct the sand, but it was no good. Lee seemed to be everywhere at once, and his fist connected soundly with his opponent's cheek, sending him flying into the floor.

"Wow!" Tsukiko couldn't help but be impressed. "I've never seen anyone that young attain that level of speed."

The Sand genin slowly picked himself off the ground, his breathing heavy. More sand poured out of his gourd as he stood, his head shadowed.

"Look out, Lee!" Chiyo shouted.

Tsukiko immediately saw what she did. Gaara's bowed face had a steady stream of sand coming from it. When he slowly raised his head, there on his face was a grimace of pure bloodlust, promising a painful end. And more alarmingly, sand over most of his face, cracking and falling apart.

"Armor...made of sand?" Tsukiko questioned, surprised. "So then that cut was actually a crack in his defense, eh?"

Sand swirled around his features, reforming the armor that in turn took on the physical look of his skin, melding seamlessly to his body.

"Well, now," Tsukiko mused, crossing her arms. "That, unlike the sand around him, has to be controlled by chakra. Unless he's built up a reserve, this is going to quickly take its toll, right?"

Baki and Temari glanced at her suspiciously. "What makes you say that?" She challenged.

Tsukiko shrugged. "Call it intuition. Point being, he must be feeling the pressure. There's no way he's had that armor on this whole time."

' _Or, call it having worked with someone who also uses an armored technique.'_

Speaking of which, Masuko was watching the fight with a predator-like intensity, her hand on her chin. Chiyo was leaning over the rails, a look of awe switching with concern, and Midori was watching through her fingers.

"It doesn't matter," Temari dismissed, her smile smug. "It may not be as easy as we thought, but the outcome's a given. Gaara can't lose."

"Oh?" Tsukiko cocked her head.

"Well, is that all?" Gaara challenged, his arms crossing again.

Lee took a deep breath, then unwound a length of bandage from both arms. "Get ready," he warned, charging forward.

At the last second, he turned, and started literally running circles around Gaara, his speed creating the beginnings of a tornado.

Without warning, he was in front of the Sand genin, a powerful front kick to the chin launching him into the air and cracking his armor again.

Then, using his momentum, Lee used his hands to push himself off the ground and deal consecutive kicks to Gaara's chest and stomach. Sand followed them upwards, but far too slow.

' _Amazing!'_ Tsukiko thought, her eyes widening. ' _Taijutsu this complex puts him far above a chunin. But, does he know his own limits?'_ Physical strain on the body notwithstanding, a miscalculation on Lee's part could overwork his muscles and send him to the hospital.

Aware that he needed to end the fight quickly, Lee's bandages wrapped around Gaara like a mummy, and Lee grabbed hold of him to send him slamming back into the ground headfirst.

"Now, take this! Primary Lotus!"

The two hit the dirt, spinning like a top and slammed into the arena floor with the force of a small explosion.

Lee landed lightly next to the crater, relatively unharmed, but out of breath. Gaara's body laid there in the center of the rubble, motionless.

"Uh oh!" Tsukiko appeared down in the ring, next to Hayate. "Crap, is he dead?" Her one and only job was to make sure that didn't happen, but there had been little warning. It was very likely he'd survived, but if the boy had never felt pain before, then it was also possible that his mind and body simply shut down. That is, if he was actually hit.

Hayate at her side, Tsukiko leaned over his body. Her sharp eyes narrowed. "Wait…"

Further cracks appeared in the body, sand falling away to prove that the shell was empty, having taken all the damage for its host.

' _Thought so.'_ Tsukiko smiled grimly. ' _There was a moment, right before they spun, where Lee closed his eyes from the pain that comes with using the forbidden Lotus techniques. Right then, Gaara substituted his real body with his armor.'_

The sand behind Lee moved, revealing the real Gaara. Tsukiko took this as a sign to get out of the way, and reappeared on the catwalk next to Guy and her team. Hayate also made himself scarce as Gaara launched his counter-attack.

Pillars of sand slammed into Lee, and there was little he could do to dodge. A wall of sand slammed him into the back wall, the pillars returning to strike at him like snakes while the battered genin kept his arms locked in front of his face to protect it.

"Any more of this, and I'll have to step in," Tsukiko murmured to the black-haired man beside her, her voice sympathetic.

"I don't get it!" Sakura exclaimed worriedly. "What's Lee doing just standing there? With his speed, he should easily be able to get out of the way of those blasts. Why doesn't he dodge them?!"

"For a very simple reason," Guy answered, frowning. "He can't dodge them."

"Huh? Why is that?"

"The Lotus is what you might call a double-edged sword," Kakashi explained. "You know that it's a Forbidden Technique. Why do you think that is?"

Midori spoke up. "Because of the strain it puts on him." She bit her thumbnail, watching Lee closely. "From the way he's moving, I can tell that his arms and legs are really hurting him. But most of Gaara's attacks are aimed at Lee's torso, so that's not it. So it has to be his own technique that caused the damage."

"Very good," Kakashi praised, nodding his head. "The Lotus isn't Ninjutsu or Genjutsu. It's Taijutsu requiring extreme physical effort. The strain it puts on the body is unimaginable. No one can sustain it for long. Right now, Lee is in so much pain, he can hardly move at all."

Masuko leaned forward, one hand gripping the railing, the other on her hip. "Lee took a gamble, trying to end this battle quickly by overwhelming his opponent. And now he's paying the price."

Tsukiko nodded, crossing her arms. "In a way, Gaara was the worst person for Lee to face. His Taijutsu-powered offense doesn't do much against defensive techniques that strong. Not that I blame him. It's insane to find someone like that here. Any other opponent would've been crushed long ago."

Down in the arena, Lee finally found a break in the sand, diving out of the way. He barely managed to stay on his feet, maintaining his defensive pose as the sand struck again and again, Gaara smiling wickedly the whole time.

"Maybe...he should give up," Midori offered weakly as Lee was once again thrown across the arena. "I mean, at this rate…" She trailed off.

A few feet away, Kankuro spoke up. "I pity the kid. Gaara will just toy with him until he begs for mercy."

"Well, then, Gaara's in for a long match, because that will never happen," Guy countered sharply.

Naruto cocked his head. "Huh?"

"Lee doesn't know how to give up." The dark-haired jounin nodded to the fight, his expression serious. "Lee will struggle on long after the point where anyone else would have quit."

Chiyo smiled, shaking her head. "You have to admire that kind of effort." Her smile faded slightly. "I wish I was that dedicated. Maybe then, things would've been different."

"Chiyo?" Tsukiko placed a hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay?"

Her expression brightened immediately. "Of course, Tsukiko-Sensei! I just got a little lost in memories. Anyway," she gestured to Gaara, her voice lowering. "Did you get any info on him from his sensei? If I have to fight him, I'd like to learn everything I can about his moves, and if he has any other tricks up his sleeve."

The white-haired jounin shook her head. "Sorry, Chiyo, but they're a tight-lipped bunch in the Sand. But, your best bet is to match him in defense and create a powerful offensive strategy."

Masuko nodded. "We'll work on your chakra armor after this, and I'll show you girls some elemental Ninjutsu."

"I agree." Tsukiko crossed her arms. "If either of you end up fighting either of those boys, you need to be prepared. As you've seen, a strong defense works against Lee as well as Gaara. And it's about time you learned your chakra natures anyway."

"I'm a Water and Earth type," Masuko grinned pointing to herself. "And there are plenty of Fire and Lightning types around to help teach you, if that's your style." She paused. "Wind might be a little tricky, out here in the Leaf, but I'm sure we can find someone."

Chiyo clenched her fists, looking back at the fight. "Hell yeah, I'm ready to go!"

Tsukiko glared at Masuko. "What exactly have you been teaching them while I was gone?!"

Down below, Lee seemed to get his second wind. His stance got a lot stronger, and he dodged several of Gaara's attacks.

"What?!" Naruto exclaimed, gripping the railing as he leaned most of his body over the edge. "He can still move like that?!"

The young Leaf shinobi grinned, getting faster with every movement.

"Lee's smiling!" Sakura said in disbelief. "He's running for his life, but he's still smiling!"

Guy smiled proudly, one hand on his hip. "Yes. Now it's Gaara's turn to run." He turned to the rest of the group, his teeth sparkling. "The Lotus of the Leaf Village blooms twice."

"I've heard that somewhere before!" Sakura's eyes widened. "Lee told me that, back in the Forest!"

Kakashi frowned. "But—" His eyes widened. "No, Guy, you didn't…"

"Yes, Kakashi, I did." Guy met his gaze calmly.

The silver-haired male narrowed his visible eye. "So that genin, that boy, is able to open the Eight Inner Gates and use the Hidden Lotus?"

Tsukiko's eyes widened, and she turned to Guy incredulously. "Is that true?!"

"Yes," The older male confirmed, his face giving away nothing. "He can use the Hidden Lotus."

Kakashi sighed heavily, irritation evident. "Well if that isn't the most—" With visible effort, he stopped himself from lecturing his friend. "Okay, fine. So how many of the Inner Gates is he able to open now?"

Guy hesitated a moment. "Five Gates."

"Are you sure it was wise to teach him something so dangerous?" Tsukiko struggled to keep her own temper down, knowing that, as a child, she would have jumped at the chance to learn a technique like the Hidden Lotus, dangerous or not.

"Hold on," Midori interrupted, holding up her hand. "What exactly are the Eight Inner Gates? I remember my father mentioning them once, but I didn't understand."

"The Eight Gates are like valves, or chakra limiters that must be opened if one is to release the Hidden Lotus," Guy explained.

Sakura shook her head. "I'm still not following."

Kakashi lifted his headband, revealing his Sharingan. "There are Gates along the chakra network, located at those points in the body where the chakra is most heavily concentrated. Starting at the head, that are the Gate of Opening, the Gate of Rest, of Life, of Pain, of Closing, of Joy, of Shock, and the Gate of Death. These are what are called the Eight Inner Gates. Their purpose is to limit the flow of chakra through the body. But the Lotus exerts tremendous pressure on these limiters, eventually forcing the Gates open. This releases the restraints on the chakra, the result being that a person's strength can be increased tenfold or more."

"The Primary Lotus opens only the First Gate—the Gate of Opening," Guy said, picking up where Kakashi left off. "This releases the brain's restraints on the muscles, freeing a person to bring forth their body strength to its full extent. You'll see results, I guarantee."

"So that was when Lee slammed Gaara's shell into the ground," Chiyo observed. "What about the Hidden Lotus?"

"At the Second Gate, the Gate of Rest, one's strength is increased further. And at the Third Gate, the Gate of Life, one enters the Hidden Lotus."

"Wait a minute!" Sakura objected. "Just the Primary Lotus almost destroyed him! He could barely move. What's going to happen to him if he takes it further?"

"Exactly." Kakashi said simply, his disapproval flaring again. "By opening all Eight Gates, you could attain power beyond even the Hokages. The only drawback is...you die."

The genin gasped, and Kakashi glared at Guy, his tone cold. "I don't know what this boy means to you, Guy, but I shouldn't have to tell you that we never bring our personal feelings into play. I wouldn't have thought you were capable of this."

"You have no right," Guy snapped, glaring back at Kakashi. "You know nothing about him. Nothing at all!"

"But Guy," Tsukiko tried to mediate. "Surely you see the problem? To teach a genin something like that, with the promise of power beyond their dreams, is foolish. They haven't seen enough, they don't know what it is to appreciate life enough to have caution and control over themselves."

"That boy has something important to prove," Guy insisted. "And he's determined to prove it, even at the cost of his life."

"But as his sensei, it is important for you to teach him that his life is valuable, that it is just as important to know when to live to fight another day!" Tsukiko crossed her arms, her expression filled with intensity.

"A fair argument, Tsukiko, but I am determined to help him reach his goal. Not for his own sake, but because that goal is worth reaching."

Tsukiko opened her mouth to argue, but was distracted by the massive chakra surge in the arena.

"I don't know what you think you're planning right now," Gaara growled. "But this match is over for you."

"You are right." Lee's chakra shot even higher, the air around him speeding up in response to his energy. "It _is_ over. One way or another." He paused, his face shadowed by his crossed arm block. "I am _not_ going to be the only one to lose here. Guy-Sensei...please let this work! It is now, or never!"

Tangible chakra rose around him in blue waves as he jerked his arms down, revealing that his skin had turned red, and his pupils had all but vanished. The wind blew his hair straight up as he shouted. "The Third Gate, Gate of Life, open!"

Now green energy intermingled with the blue, and Lee took his fighting stance.

"What's happening?!" Kankuro shouted, shielding his eyes.

"He's opened the Third Gate, the Gate of Life," Kakashi explained. "Now he'll attack."

"Oh, no," Guy interrupted. "Not yet."

"Hm?"

Lee bent forward, widening his stance. "The Fourth Gate...Gate of Pain...Open!" An attack cry left his mouth as the energy started to eat away at the arena floor.

"Incredible," Kakashi said incredulously, his Sharingan fixed on Lee's shaking form. "No one can do that through sheer effort alone. The boy's truly a genius."

Tsukiko shook her head in disbelief. "What's with today's youth? I need to keep up with my training, or the genin will surpass me."

"No kidding," Masuko muttered, her eyes huge.

To say Lee shot forward would be a grievous understatement. He exploded from his spot, his feet cracking the floor and sending up rubble with each step. The force he used to slam his foot into Gaara's chin sent shock waves through the arena and up to the catwalks.

"Whoa!" Tsukiko blocked her eyes, squinting.

"He's faster than ever!" Kakashi shouted to her right.

"Where'd they...go?!" Naruto asked, looking around.

"Up there!" Shikamaru pointed to where Gaara's body was in the air, nearly hitting the ceiling. His sand followed, too slow to protect him while his armor cracked away.

Lee, meanwhile, was nowhere to be seen. At least, not to the experienced eyes of the genin, who missed the rushes in the air that signaled the Leaf boy's location. All they heard was his voice. "Hiding behind that sand armor again, eh? Well, we will see about that!"

He appeared above Gaara, elbowing his stomach. And then underneath, kicking him back up. Again and again, Lee slammed the red-haired ninja around like a ball, leaving his opponent no chance to counter or defend.

"You are a tough one!" Lee called, his voice strained. "Try this!" His fist contorted, the muscles tearing apart under the force.

Tsukiko watched with bated breath, her eyes gold so she could read the air currents and keep up. She wasn't the only one. Kakashi's Sharingan was following Lee closely, as was Neji's Byakugan.

"One more time, and we are finished! The Fifth Gate, Gate of Closing, open!"

Lee's fist slammed into Gaara's stomach so fast, Tsukiko nearly missed it. His hand closed around the Sand genin's sash, even as the sand came up around Lee's back, unable to protect its master.

With a sharp pull of the sash, Gaara was pulled into Lee's fist and foot, which came down to meet him with devastating force.

"HIDDEN LOTUS!"

The shockwave of the blow created a new crater. Gaara fell, his gourd cracking and turning into sand as he hit the floor.

"What the hell?!" Masuko growled, blocking her eyes from ensuing debris. "Does that kid bleed sand too?!"

The dark-haired genin landed, falling over and rolling out of danger. He was back to normal, the red of his skin replaced with a relieved grin.

"He did it!" Naruto shouted.

"Hang on," Chiyo said, squinting through the dust. "His sand is still moving!"

The smoke began to clear, allowing everyone to see the truth.

The sand that made up Gaara's gourd acted as a cushion, taking most of the blow and likely saving the boy's life. He lay motionless for a moment, his breathing strangled and heavy, before slowly raising his hand, eyes locked on Lee.

The young Leaf ninja sat up, breathing equally strained. He tried to crawl away as a hand made of sand reached for him. Getting to his feet only to fall over, Lee was unable to get away before the sand enveloped his left arm and leg.

"Sand Coffin!" Gaara closed his outstretched hand, making a fist.

A terrible crunching noise echoed through the arena, followed by Lee's cry of pain as his bones were shattered. He fell to the ground, seemingly unconscious.

But Gaara didn't stop. The sand rose in a wave around Lee, threatening to envelop his entire body and kill him.

' _Time to step in!'_

"Now you die!" Gaara growled.

Tsukiko moved, but something flashed past her in a blur of green, slamming into and dissipating the sand.

Guy.

He stood protectively in front of Lee, glaring at Gaara. Guy's eyes were filled with determination and anger, which seemed to shock the red-haired boy.

Gaara stared back, looking surprisingly vulnerable, before he grabbed at his head, seemingly in pain. "But why?" He asked, his voice somehow smaller than it had already been. "He failed. Why save him?"

Tsukiko's breath caught, anger and sympathy colliding in her chest. Those few sentences revealed quite a bit about what the Village Hidden in the Sand was teaching its young shinobi.

Guy didn't flinch, nor did he hesitate. "Because he is my student. And also because he is precious to me."

Surprise and confusion flickered across the Sand genin's face as he stood, reforming his gourd. Gaara watched Guy a moment longer, before turning his back and walking to the catwalk stairs. "I quit."

"What?" Sakura frowned. "He quits?"

"But it's too late for Lee," Kakashi said quietly. "He lost the match the minute Guy intervened."

Tsukiko traded glances with Hayate, and nodded. The coughing ninja raised his hand, voice firm. "The winner is—huh?"

Gasps echoed at the sight of Lee, who'd managed to get to his feet, albeit shakily. Blood ran down his destroyed arm and leg, but his other hand remained in a fighting stance.

"It can't be!" Guy's shocked exclamation have voice to what everyone was thinking. Even Gaara paused, turning back to face his opponent with an air of incredulity.

"Lee?" Tsukiko cocked her head, trying to get the boy's attention. His head was down, the effort required to lift it beyond his capabilities. "I'm sorry, but the match is over."

His teacher turned to him, grabbing the young ninja's shoulders. "No, Lee. It's all right. It's all over now. Anyway, you're in no condition to—" Guy broke off, his eyes widening. "Lee?" Tears appeared in the older man's eyes, and his voice broke as they streamed down his face. "Oh, Lee. What have I done?"

"What's wrong?!" Midori landed next to Tsukiko, Chiyo on her heels. "I can help! Is he—"

She broke off, falling silent when she saw Lee's blank face.

"Look at you," Guy's voice was a strange mixture of sorrow and pride. "Not even conscious, and still determined to show the world what you can do."

Tsukiko shook her head, smiling wryly. ' _What incredible willpower, to keep him standing long after his mind has faded to black. We need more people in the world like this one.'_

"Lee, you've already proven it," Guy whispered, tears wetting the broken floor. He hugged the young boy, his voice shaking. "You are a splendid ninja."

"Tsukiko-Sensei…" Midori began, looking lost. "Is there anything I can do?"

The older woman placed a hand on the blond girl's shoulder. "I'm sorry, Midori, but there's nothing you can do for him now," Tsukiko said gently. "Go back up to Masuko, and don't let this get you down. Lee fought with everything he had, which is something to be celebrated, even if he didn't win."

Hayate sighed, but there was nothing to be done. "The winner is Gaara," he announced, gesturing everyone to clear the area.

Midori nodded and turned away, but Chiyo didn't move, her attention fixed on the red-haired Sand ninja.

Gaara showed no sign of having heard Hayate's announcement, his eyes locked on Guy as he laid Lee down on the ground. Anger and pain played out across his features, before he turned away, eyes troubled.

"You know, you're not a monster," Chiyo called out after him.

He froze, his back going stiff, before turning his head to shoot her a dark glare. "Shut up."

She met his gaze evenly. "The real monsters try to act like they're not, like they're doing something good when in the end, they're just hurting people."

That vulnerable expression reappeared briefly, a crack in the emotional armor that surrounded the boy even tighter than his sand. Then his gaze returned to that blank, troubled expression, and he walked away.

Tsukiko frowned, watching Chiyo carefully as the young girl walked past, not making eye contact with her sensei.

' _There's something going on with her. Something she doesn't want to tell us.'_ Tsukiko caught Masuko's eye, her frown mirrored by her friend. It was Chiyo's right to keep her own counsel, but if possible, they'd like to be able to help her. If Chiyo never opened up about her problems, there would never be a solution. But she was private, as energetic and happy as she seemed, never sharing too much about herself, even to Midori, her best friend.

' _Chiyo...I want you to trust us, the way we trust you. None of us would ever hurt you…'_

These words on her lips, Tsukiko said nothing, unable to do anything that would blow her cover. So instead, she watched her student's retreating back, praying that one day, that girl would finally open herself up to someone.

* * *

THEN:

Tsukiko shook her head in annoyance as she watched the man before them. He'd been waving his kunai up at the sky for a while now, frantically trying to attack an unseen enemy.

Finally, Itachi placed a gentle hand on the man's back. "Are you done yet?"

The man's shoulders shot up, as though Itachi's voice had awakened him from a dream, and he whirled around.

"The thing you've been trying so desperately to cut in half is my Genjutsu."

"Wh-What…?" The unfamiliar word didn't seem to register with the man, whose face grew pale at the sight of two ninjas facing him.

Though sympathetic, Itachi's voice was stern. "Do you want to have the dream again?" Both of his eyes were a deep red.

Tsukiko allowed her eyes to turn red as well, glaring at the man with barely withheld irritation for this stupid mission.

"Ee! Eee!" The man dropped his kunai and cowered the moment he saw the Sharingan. "H-Have mercy!" He begged, tears streaming down his face.

Both children's eyes turned black again.

"Itachi! Tsukiko!" A voice called from behind. Yuki-sensei. Two ninja trailed along behind him. The new additions to Team Two.

Tenma's death forced Shinko to confront the reality of the callous nature of the ninja world, breaking her spirit. So she resigned as a ninja, and now worked in a tea shop in the village.

The new ninja had both graduated from the academy that year. They had been ahead of the two children at school, but as ninja, both Tsukiko and Itachi had a year's seniority on them. They were also one of the two reasons for Tsukiko's bad mood.

"Did you catch him?" Yuki asked.

"Mm." Itachi turned his gaze back to the man quailing on the ground, missing Tsukiko's curt nod.

Their "teacher" (a laughable title at this point) came over to stand in front of the man, the two new recruits behind him looking relieved. "You can't sneak into the village and misrepresent your history just because you want to be a ninja, you know. That's not help people become ninja."

"I-I'm sorry."

"By the way, these two kids are only nine. We have kids like this all over the place; that's the world of the ninja."

The man opened his eyes wide in surprise.

A resident of the Land of Fire had slipped into the village, with the intention of becoming a ninja. They were to secure the man, and put the fear of the shinobi in him. That was their current mission. Of course, it was the lowest mission rank, a D. But it was the right level for the two newcomers, so that was how it had to be. Naturally, however, Tsukiko and Itachi were irritated by this.

It had been just over three months since they started doing nothing but D-rank missions, and Tsukiko felt a growing sense of urgency. Did she really have the time to be doing this sort of thing? And Itachi, he was really training himself to master the Sharingan through these sorts of missions? Ridiculous.

' _Of course,'_ Tsukiko thought crossly. ' _I could help him a lot faster if he would just use it on me.'_

Ever since Itachi had gotten the Sharingan, he'd refused to use it against her, making the excuse that he didn't know how to control it and didn't want to hurt her. But now, after three months with Shisui, Itachi had attained a certain level of mastery that allowed him to wield the Sharingan effectively against his enemies. So why not against her?

"Way to go Itachi-Sensei! You too, Tsukiko-Sensei, as always!" The new girl, Himuka, called out cheerfully. Even though she was four years older, she insisted on calling the two children "sensei." She was a nice girl, but had a forgettable face and way of speaking that blended into the background, unless she was being annoying.

Like now. The whole "sensei" thing had been embarrassing and slightly flattering at the beginning, but had quickly gotten old as it became clear that Himuka had no intention of actually helping on any missions, preferring to gawk on the sidelines and congratulate them later. It was this inaction that meant she never improved, meaning they'd be stuck doing D-ranks.

As for the other recruit, Tsukiko much preferred him over Himuka, but only because she'd never actually heard him talk. His name was Yoji, and from the Aburame clan. That said, neither Itachi nor Tsukiko had seen him use the insect control that his family was so well-known for.

"Alright, let's head back to the village." Yuki's bright voice made Tsukiko's heart feel even heavier. Truthfully, it wasn't arrogance that made her want to leave this team, but rather, a sense that she could be doing so much more to help, if given the chance.

* * *

"Tsukiko!"

Hearing her name, the young girl looked up, smiling when she saw Izumi waiting for her at her house, a grumpy Sasuke beside her. He still hadn't warmed up to the girl, despite her coming over quite frequently to talk to Tsukiko.

It was odd, having a friend who wasn't also a training partner. Odder still was having a friend who wasn't also Itachi's friend. Like his younger brother, the older Uchiha wasn't overly fond of Izumi, though he was always polite to her. Still, Tsukiko always enjoyed the time they spent together, especially since Itachi was so busy training his Sharingan, and wouldn't let her help.

Itachi sighed. "So she's back." His voice was more resigned than irritated.

"Yes, because I asked her to," Tsukiko replied, her voice slightly sharper than she intended. "I'm sorry that you don't like her, but I need someone to spend time with while go do all your super secret Uchiha stuff."

A flash of guilt crossed his face. "I always tell you what happened at the meetings. Besides, it's not—"

"You know that's not what I'm talking about!" Marching away from a frozen Itachi, whom she'd never yelled at before, Tsukiko met a slightly concerned Izumi at the door.

"Tsukiko! Did you have a fun mission?" Sasuke, now four years old, delighted in chattering to his older brother and adoptive sister from the moment they got home to when he reluctantly went to sleep, curled between the two.

"Mhmm," Tsukiko nodded distractedly, answering Izumi's look with a forced smile. "Hi, Izumi. What do you want to do today?"

The pretty Uchiha girl glanced past her at Itachi, who was now slowly coming up the road. "Uh, well, Lady Mikoto had some errands, and asked if we'd watch Sasuke."

"Sure. Sounds good to me." Without looking back, she raised her voice slightly. "Itachi was going to go train with Shisui today anyway, so it's not like I'd have anything to do."

With her back to him, she couldn't see his face, but still felt him pause. Guilt threatened to make her turn around and apologize, but she held firm. If Itachi wasn't going to trust her to train with him, then it was his own fault.

Spinning around, she flashed a bright smile. "Come on, Sasuke! Let's go play!"

The little boy instantly beamed, and left his brother's side, where he'd been pulling at Itachi's sleeve and asking questions.

Scooping him up, she turned to Izumi. "Let's do some baking today! Lady Mikoto's been showing me how to make all sorts of stuff!"

Stunned by Tsukiko's shining smile, seemingly brightening the air around her with sparkles, Izumi nodded. "Sure, I'll be there in a minute."

Tsukiko nodded and, without another word or glance back, went into the house.

Slightly intimidated, Izumi risked a glance at the handsome Uchiha boy next her her. His head was lowered, but she could still see his sad smile.

"She hates me now."

"Huh?" Izumi glanced back and forth between the the doorway where her friend had gone and Itachi. "Who? Tsukiko? She seemed fine to me…"

His head lowered a little more. "I know it hurts her to not be included, but...I don't want her near it."

"Near what?" Now Izumi was totally confused.

Itachi seemed to realize where he was and what he was saying, because he looked up sharply and then relaxed seeing it was only Izumi. "Nothing. Forget it."

Izumi bit her lip. She'd admired Itachi for a really long time, and had wanted to get closer to him. But Tsukiko, the person she considered her best friend, was mad at him for some reason. And Tsukiko never got mad, not like this.

"Is it the Sharingan?"

Her quiet question made Itachi look up in surprise.

She smiled sadly. "I thought so. I have them too, you know, so I think I get it." Her hand unconsciously touched her cheek. "In order to awaken these eyes, you have to experience true pain and sadness. And after that, every time you use them, you can't help but remember that pain. It's almost like a curse."

Itachi's eyes tightened, and in that moment, he looked incredibly vulnerable.

"Itachi! Are you ready to—oh! Am I interrupting something?"

Shisui's playful teasing dropped when he saw Itachi's face. "Hey, are you alright?"

The younger boy turned away. "I'm fine. Let's go. Tsukiko's not coming."

He seemed to vanish before Izumi's eyes, and the young girl sighed heavily. Shisui cast her a questioning glance before he too vanished.

Izumi stood there a moment longer, before going inside. From within, she could hear Sasuke's laughter and the changing of pot and pans.

Entering the kitchen, the young Uchiha's eyes widened at the sight of Tsukiko covered in flour, lecturing a laughing Sasuke and playfully threatening him with a spatula.

"Sasuke! That bowl of flour was for dangos! Not for my hair!"

"But Tsukiko, you can't even see it in your hair!"

She growled. "Oh, you think that's funny, huh? C'mere!" Tsukiko grabbed him in a hug, then shook her hair, sending a cloud of white powder on the boy.

"No fair! No fair!" Sasuke shouted, twisting in her hold.

Unable to keep quiet, Izumi started giggling, startling the pair. "You...two...look so...funny!" She managed, unable to breathe.

Tsukiko and Sasuke shared a look, then both leapt at Izumi, getting her covered in flour as the pair latched on to her.

"Aaah!" She screamed, startled. "You guuuys!" Futilely, Izumi shook her hair. "It won't come out!"

The two culprits grinned, and all three children burst into laughter.

* * *

"Hah!" Expelling a deep breath, Shisui looked at Itachi and smiled. "Yeah, training with you really forces me to put my back into it."

Itachi looked at his cheerful friend with a half-hearted smile, completely drenched with sweat after their fight.

They had been sparring seriously for about two hours or so, after completing Itachi's Sharingan exercises. Shisui had suggested that they train a while longer today, as a way to vent Itachi's frustration with his assignments. They had already gone fifteen rounds, with breaks of about three minutes between each one. So far, Itachi had won six times, and Shisui, nine.

The only rule was no Sharingan, as it was dangerous for Itachi to overuse it while he was still trying to master it. Everything else, however, was fair game.

" _You know that's not what I'm talking about!"_

Itachi's jaw clenched as her words echoed in his ears once again, his hand reaching into his pouch to pull out a shuriken.

The weapons he and Shisui flung clashed in the air and then flew off in some random direction. Neither boy watched to see where they went. They were already leaping at each other, and closing the distance between themselves.

"Chi!"

"Hah!"

Their fighting cries blended together.

With a thud, their bodies collided in midair, tangled together, and crashed to the ground.

Shisui got to his feet and in position first, and launched a kick at Itachi, who was propped up on one knee. Itachi immediately thrusted his right arm out to block it. His field of view shaking with the impact of the kick, he saw his friend quickly weaving signs.

"Firestyle: Fireball Jutsu!" Shisui shouted, and an enormous ball of flames erupted from his mouth.

Itachi stared at the flames streaking toward him, a smile pulling up his lips at the corners.

' _Just like Shisui.'_

The sight of the fire was always thrilling to Itachi. He gloated to himself that even among the people of their clan, only his father and Shisui could release a fireball this massive.

Shisui wouldn't be able to manage a counterattack in time. His defense was slow too. Direct hit.

"No way!" The older boy cried out, surprised by the unexpected result.

The giant ball of flames ripped Itachi into countless pieces, which transformed into a myriad of crows that attacked all at once.

Substitution.

The real Itachi was running around behind Shisui.

Before Shisui could realize his mistake and whirl around, the smaller boy had a kunai at his throat.

"So you win, huh," Shisui said, regretfully.

In the end, they sparred thirty-five times. The result was eleven wins for Itachi and twenty-four for Shisui.

"You're beyond genin level already." Shisui took a swig of water from his canteen. "Your Chunin Exams being put off again this year?"

"Yeah," Itachi replied glumly, tilting his own canteen back to pour cool water into his mouth.

"You said your supervisor jounin was Yuki Minazuki or something, right?"

Itachi nodded silently.

"Is he maybe jealous of you and Tsukiko? Maybe he's not into what a genius you are, so he's putting off recommending you for the exams?"

"There's nothing I can do, even if that is what's going on with him." There was no point thinking about recommending Tsukiko or Itachi. They wouldn't get to take the Chunin Exams again this year. That was a fact.

"But I mean, the two of you are already so—"

"Let's just forget about it," Itachi said shortly. If they talked about it anymore, it would probably make his irritation toward his sensei stronger.

"Hmm," Shisui studied him. "So that's not it…"

Itachi tilted his head. "What?"

The older boy shrugged. "I'm trying to figure out why you've been in such a bad mood these last few days. Particularly today. You definitely should have won more than eleven out of thirty-five matches, and you were distracted all through Sharingan training."

Cheeks reddening, Itachi looked away irritably. "I'm fine."

"See, that's the thing." Shisui flicked a rock at him, grinning broadly. "I don't believe you." His eyes narrowed calculatingly. "If I had to guess what could be bothering you so much, I'd say it's something with Tsukiko? She hasn't been training with us lately, and you two used to be practically joined at the hip."

Itachi said nothing, but the older boy's keen eyes saw something that seemed to confirm his assumption.

"I see." He crossed his arms and nodded, leaning back against a tree. "Did you two have a lover's quarrel?"

"What?!" Forget his cheeks, his whole face was red now.

Shisui whistled. "It's usually hard to figure out what you're thinking, but I guess this topic makes it pretty easy."

Itachi averted his eyes. "I don't know what you're talking about."

" _You know that's not what I'm talking about!"_

The younger boy's slight wince did not go unnoticed. "Did she yell at you?"

Silence.

Shisui sighed. "She did, huh? And Tsukiko _never_ yells at you. You must have done something special to make her so mad."

He was goading him, and Itachi knew it. Still, that didn't stop his fists from clenching and that hated angry emotion from erupting in his stomach.

Snapping his finger, Shisui pointed at him. "It's that girl, huh? Izumi, right? You like her, and Tsukiko got jealous."

All at once, Itachi's anger evaporated at the absurd concept, and his whole body relaxed. "I don't have any opinion on Izumi. She's Tsukiko's friend, that's all." Now he was able to speak clearly, and do his best to end Shisui's inquiries.

"But she seemed pretty chummy with you when I showed up at your house."

Itachi shrugged helplessly. "I don't know her feelings, only my own. I don't know her all that well." It was the truth, after all. Izumi was very pretty, and he'd of course noticed, but then again, so was Tsukiko.

He felt Shisui's critical gaze and shrugged again. "I don't know why Tsukiko's upset. Only that she doesn't want to train with me anymore, and prefers Izumi's company."

"That was...almost the truth, wasn't it?" Shisui asked discerningly as he sank to the ground, the picture of relaxation. He closed his eyes and leaned back, as if solving a complicated puzzle. "You're too observant to have missed jealousy, and what you said about Izumi sounds true enough, so maybe...you're the jealous one?" He opened one eye. "I didn't peg you for the type at first, but I can definitely see it when it comes to her. You are awfully overprotective of her, after all."

Back to the goading. But it wasn't going to work, because Itachi had a firm grip on his emotions now. "I'm not jealous," he said, sinking down to mimic Shisui's ease. "I'm happy that she has a new friend. Whatever makes her happy is fine with me."

Shisui clicked his tongue in irritation. "That also sounds like the truth. Alright, you're not jealous, and Tsukiko's not jealous, so why else would you be avoiding her?"

"I'm not."

"Of course you are," Shisui waved his response away. "Anyone could see that you didn't want to go home. That's why I suggested we spar; to give you more time away and to tire you out so I could interrogate you." He grinned evilly.

Itachi felt himself almost smile at that, and shook his head. "It's not important," he said stubbornly. "We just had a disagreement."

"That does sound more boring than what I expected," Shisui sighed. "My next guess was that you confessed to her and she rejected you."

Itachi shot to his feet, mortified. "Wha—Why would—How did you—" He was completely at a loss for words, and his face burned with embarrassment.

"Oh?" Shisui sat up, raising an eyebrow. "What a different reaction from when I suggested you liked Izumi."

Itachi glared at him fiercely, making the older boy chuckle.

"Don't laugh!"

Shisui held up his hands in surrender, his body shaking. "Sorry, sorry. I just never get to tease you." He took one more shaky breath before he calmed down. "So, an argument with the girl you like. Okay, tell me about it. Maybe I can help."

The younger boy said nothing, his fists clenching and unclenching with indecision.

Finally, Shisui sighed and patted the ground next to him. "Itachi, I really want to help. I consider you a little brother, and Tsukiko a little sister. If you two are fighting, then I want to do what I can to smooth things over so you two can go back to the way you were."

Itachi's hands fell limply at his sides, defeated, and his head bowed. "Can they?" He asked, his voice small. "Can things go back to normal, now that I have these?" His raised eyes were a deep red, two tomoe marks spinning.

Frowning, Shisui stood. "What do you mean? What's wrong with your Sharingan?"

"Nothing," Itachi replied honestly, unsure how to say what he felt, or if he even wanted to. Then Izumi's words floated into his head. "I just—I feel like the Uchihas are cursed."

The older boy froze, his face going dark. "How so?"

"Tenma was not my friend, or even someone I knew very well, but he was still my teammate. There was a bond. And when he died, my anger at being unable to help him is what awakened my Sharingan. Essentially, in my weakness, I traded his life for power." Now that the words were flowing, there was no way to stop them. "And I'm glad I awakened my eyes. I'm glad I have this power, and I want more. But...what will happen the next time I'm too weak? Whose life will I trade for power?"

Itachi clutched at his face. "It can't be Tsukiko. I can't let her get hurt because of me and my eyes. She wanted me to use them on her, to try to hurt her with the eyes our teammate died for. And I can't. I won't."

Shisui's hands came down hard on his shoulders, gripping tightly. "Have you been carrying this burden for the last three months?" He asked, his voice strained with anger.

Red eyes met red as Shisui shook him. "Why didn't you tell me you felt like this, Itachi?! Why didn't you tell me you were pushing her away because of your guilt?! Dammit, Itachi! You can't keep something like this inside you. It'll destroy you!"

Itachi's eyes widened. He'd never seen Shisui so upset, and it was...frightening.

Realization flashed in the older ninja's face, and he loosened his grip with a heavy sigh. "I'm sorry," he said, rubbing his eyes. "It's just...Itachi, you can't do this to yourself." He smiled sadly. "You have to trust someone, ya know? We Uchiha are stained by our history, and the violence we hold inside. Our anger, our emotions, are our biggest strength and weakness. We summon immense power through pain, at the price of spreading it to others."

He looked at his hands. "Sometimes, when we're at those meetings, and that dark aura of hate is all around us, I can see the stain on my hands, the blood yet to be spilled. It haunts each of us, from the moment our Sharingan activate, and once we see it, we can never go back."

Itachi felt himself shake, the rolling emotions from Tenma's death returning. Shame, anger, self-hatred...his stain.

"I understand that you don't want Tsukiko to be stained as well," Shisui continued, taking a long shuddery breath. "That you feel too dirty to even touch her. And I'm sorry. You're only nine. Far too young to have to understand what even adults have trouble with, and way too young to be thinking about pushing away loved ones to protect them. But you do have those thoughts and feelings, so let me offer this advice."

Itachi was frozen, unable to look away as Shisui straightened, his red eyes fading to black.

"It's not your decision whether or not Tsukiko stays with you. And it's not just hers either. It's the two of you, together, that decide. You can't just push her away and hurt her because you're afraid. Maybe hurting her is better than definitely, which is what you're doing now. You need to tell her the truth, and apologize. She's not a fragile little doll. She's exceptional, just like you. Tsukiko has seen horrible things as well, and her eyes also came at a price. What if she feels the same? What if she thinks she sacrificed her family in order to activate her Gensogan? She could help you, Itachi. What you're doing is being selfish, and hurting her now so you don't hurt yourself later. Do you understand?"

Shame coiled tightly in his gut as he nodded, hot tears threatening to roll down his cheeks. ' _Shisui's right. Of course he is. Tsukiko's biggest fear is that I'll leave her behind, and that's exactly what I'm doing. I'm hurting her now so there's no possibility she'll hurt me. Selfish.'_

"I'm sorry," he croaked, self-hatred biting away at him.

And then he found himself pulled tightly against Shisui as the older ninja hugged him fiercely. "I know. You're a smart kid, so you would've figured it out eventually. But I want you to consider me a big brother, and sometimes big brothers have to hurt you to make you grow. Kami knows I didn't want to make you feel bad, but you needed to wake up."

He smiled gently and pulled back. "You may not realize how important someone is until you lose them. Now, I know you're a little young to be thinking about this, but I want you to try. Does Tsukiko make you feel tainted, or ashamed?"

Moments flashed through his mind. Her belief in his dream at the academy, her saying that she didn't need anyone but him at her side, her lips against his cheek, her awe and happiness when his Sharingan awoke, and the warm feeling he'd got in his chest when he'd awoken from a horrible dream to find her curled up against him, whispering words of comfort. She hadn't realized he'd awoken, and only left his side when the early light of dawn peered through the window. She'd returned to her futon, and he'd been left with the realization that she'd been doing that every time he'd had a nightmare, never mentioning it, and a warm feeling in his chest that made him so happy he'd wanted to cry.

"No." His voice was firm. "She doesn't."

Shisui clapped his back. "Then it's time for the final lesson of the day. As tainted as we are, there is always someone out there with the ability to cleanse us. You're lucky that you found your someone, Itachi, so don't push her away."

Itachi nodded, wiping his eyes. He was embarrassed at having nearly cried in front of Shisui, but he felt lighter, as if a great weight was lifted off his chest. Now he knew what he needed to do, and finally having that knowledge felt like the solution to a problem he'd been fighting with for months.

"Alright," Shisui clapped his hands. "Enough moping around. I have the perfect idea about how to get Tsukiko to forget she was ever mad at you."

* * *

Humming lightly to herself, Tsukiko placed the last dango on a stick, smiling proudly at the plate. It had taken a lot of work, and several batches of flour, but she'd finally made a pretty tasty treat for herself and Sasuke. Of course, Sasuke was asleep, tired out from running around, and Izumi had left a bit ago, her mother calling her home.

' _I should share with Itachi,'_ she thought, guilt rising again. She hated fighting with him, especially when she knew she was being too sensitive. But, it really felt like he was trying to leave her behind, and she knew that if she was abandoned again, she might never recover.

Still, Itachi hated fighting too. And he'd always been upfront, almost blunt, with his feelings. Hiding something like this was weird, and an indicator that whatever it was, it was tearing him up.

"And that is why I'll apologize," she sighed, looking at the food. "Because it's not his fault."

"Tsukikooooo!" Shisui's voice called from the front door, sounding strained. "Can you help? Itachi hurt himself."

"What?!" Dango forgotten, Tsukiko raced to the front entrance, her heart in her throat. A terrible fear snaked down her spine at the sight of Shisui carrying Itachi on his back.

But, then she realized that Itachi's expression wasn't one of pain, but rather, annoyance. Her heart, which was threatening to burst, began to slow.

At Tsukiko's expression, Itachi's face reddened, and he puffed up his cheek irritably. "Shisui, I'm fine. You didn't have to worry Tsukiko over nothing."

"What happened?" She asked, approaching more slowly.

Shisui laughed. "Well, this guy overdid it a little during Sharingan training, and his eyes were reading faster than he could move, so he sprained his ankle." He moved to set Itachi down, and the younger ninja winced as his weight briefly settled on his injured leg.

Instantly, Tsukiko was at his other side, taking his arm and wrapping it around her shoulder. "C'mon, let's go to the kitchen. I made dango!" She smiled at him, and Itachi felt the warm feeling return to his chest.

"Tsukiko...I'm sorry," he said, allowing her to help him walk. "I was being foolish, and I hurt you. I just didn't want to use my Sharingan on you, because I was afraid that I would make a mistake and hurt you. I…" he paused, his head lowered. "I don't think I'd ever forgive myself if that happened."

The white-haired girl felt her chest tightened, and she blinked away tears. "I'm sorry, too," she said softly. "I knew something was bothering you, and I was acting like a jerk." She smiled weakly. "I was just being selfish."

Shisui, having been forgotten up to this point, started clapping. "There we go! My two favorite genin are friends again!" He grinned. It had totally been worth sparring one last time against the younger boy, knowing that his Sharingan would cause him to act recklessly. And the rock he'd thrown at Itachi's leg certainly hadn't helped.

Itachi glared at him, not at all happy with the fact that he'd been hurt in order to manipulate Tsukiko. But, he should have known better than to overuse his eyes, and the telltale happiness on his face as the pretty white-haired girl fussed over him told Shisui all he needed to know.

' _Itachi has it bad,'_ Shisui thought, leaning against the doorway as the two children headed to the kitchen, a gentle smile on his face. The smile faded slightly as he remembered that there was another meeting the next day that he'd yet to prep for. His eyes darkened with determination. Itachi wasn't ready for the darkness of the clan, but if things didn't change, there was a very good possibility of the village getting dragged into another war. One where Itachi and Tsukiko found themselves on opposing sides. And he couldn't allow that to happen.

' _Don't worry, Itachi, Tsukiko. I'll think of something.'_

* * *

A.N. All right, I hope you guys liked it! The fight took a long time to write, and was hard to differentiate. There's only so many ways I can write, "He kicked/punched and SAND!" But I think I covered the majority of the match well.

As for the flashback, it was almost a .5 chapter, but wasn't quite long enough. More importantly, it sets up events to come.

So, next time, the last match and the start of training! Chiyo's secrets will begin to come out, Tsukiko, Sasuke, and Kakashi will have to figure out a training strategy, aaaaaaaand, Tsukiko will begin her lightning practice anew!

Bye for now!


	16. Chapter 14

A.N. Hello, my amazing readers! I'm sorry I'm a day (almost two, as it's 11:10 at the time of writing this note) late, but things have been a little crazy! But, never fear, a new chapter is here!

* * *

NOW:

' _A little anticlimactic, but an interesting technique,'_ Tsukiko thought ruefully, watching the Akimichi boy being helped up after being defeated by the Sound genin in under two minutes. Maybe not the most thrilling of battles, but the preliminaries were finally over, and that was something to celebrate!

Below, Hayate gestured for Tsukiko to join him down in the arena, tapping his clipboard.

Obligingly, she leapt down and handed him her notes on all the battles and fighting styles of the "allied" genin.

Taking the papers, he nodded before tucking them away and walking to the center of the destroyed floor. "And with that match," he announced, raising his hand. "The preliminary rounds for the Third Exam are now finished."

He paused, turning to the Hokage, who nodded his head firmly.

"Would all of the finalists please come down to the arena?" Hayate asked, joined by Ibiki on his right, and Anko on his left. Tsukiko stood by Anko, smiling warmly at the genin (predominantly Leaf) who were to advance.

"I commend all those who have advanced to the finals for the third level of the Chunin Exams," Hayate said formally, once all ten genin stood before him. "Well, there's one person missing, but still...congratulations."

' _Sasuke…'_ Tsukiko glanced up at Kakashi, her unspoken question obvious.

The grey-haired male said something to Sakura, waving cheerily before vanishing, no doubt to inquire as to the state of his student.

The Third Hokage, standing on the slightly raised platform behind the proctors, suddenly spoke up. "So, the results are here. Including the absent Sasuke, we have seven ninja from the Leaf Village, three from the Sand Village, and one from the Sound Village." Holding the brim of his Hokage hat, he smiled. "And now, I shall begin the explanation of the final rounds."

The entire arena became so silent, the drop of a pin could be heard clearly. Every genin listened with rapt attention, the final test of their worth about to be revealed.

"In the Third Exam, each of you will put your battle skills on display," the old man began, his voice ringing out with an energy that belied his age. "You'll demonstrate the power and control that you've achieved in your respective disciplines. Accordingly, the final battles will commence one month from now."

Aaaaand of course the first voice to interrupt was Naruto's.

"Wait, we're not going to do it right here and now?!"

"This is to provide a suitable period of preparation," The Third Hokage explained.

"What do you mean by that?" Neji now, spoke up.

"Simply this—in addition to announcing the conclusion of the preliminary matches to each country's leaders, we must also have some time to prepare and distribute the summons for the final selection. Not to mention that you examinees are going to need time to prepare for something that is this important."

"Look, I don't really get what you're trying to say," Kankuro interrupted rudely. "What's the point of this?"

The Hokage leveled a knowing gaze at the young puppet master. "I mean that to know your adversaries and prepare yourselves, you need time. Even though up to this point, all the battles have been real battles, as I'm sure you can all attest—they were conducted on the premise that you were fighting an unknown enemy. But that's no longer the case now that you've battled each other."

' _And seen the fighting styles and tactics of each of your opponents,'_ Tsukiko added mentally. ' _The advantage goes to the one who plans out every situation, figures out how to counter each of the others.'_

"So in order to make the finals fair and just, we're giving you this month. Each of you must embrace the opportunity to practice hard and learn some new tricks. Because by now, everyone here knows your techniques. So using your old, tired tricks is a sure way to lose in the finals. And remember to get some rest as well."

"Train well, and show us what you can do," Tsukiko added, meeting each of their eyes. "You have the pride of your villages at stake."

Lord Third nodded, taking a few steps forward. "Now, with all of that behind us, I'd like to begin winding things up. But before we can bring this to an end, first there is one more important matter to take care of for the final rounds."

"Let's get on with it!" Naruto shouted impatiently, shifting from foot to foot. "I mean, how long do we have to wait until we start training?"

"In a _calm,_ orderly fashion," the old man continued as if he hadn't heard the interruption. "All of you are going to take one slip of paper from the box that Anko is holding."

Anko produced an orange box with the hole at the top. "Everyone just stay where you are," she ordered. "I'll come to you." She walked over to the Sound ninja, standing on the right end of the line. "Just take one."

Moving down the line, each ninja took a folded piece of paper out of the box.

' _Interesting…'_ Tsukiko thought. ' _The pairs are actually random this year…'_ Probably for the best, as there was an overwhelming number of Leaf genin.

"Good," Ibiki spoke up, a pen and clipboard in hand. "Now, going from right to left, tell me the number that's written on your slip of paper."

"I've got nine," Dozu, the Sound ninja said slowly.

"Number one, of course," Naruto announced cockily.

Temari was next. "Seven."

Then Kankuro. "Five."

Gaara. "Three."

Shikamaru. "Eight."

Neji. "Two."

Shino. "Six."

Chiyo. "Eleven."

Midori. "Ten."

"And that means Sasuke will be number four." Ibiki marked down the numbers quickly.

"Now, I'm going to tell you about how the final selection tournament is going to work." Lord Third grinned, obviously enjoying himself.

"Is that what the numbers are for?" Shikamaru asked, his tone accusing. "Drawing lots?"

"Ibiki, you may reveal which ninja have been paired up."

"Yes sir!" Turning his clipboard around, the interrogation officer presented a chart for how the matches would be played out.

The first match would be Naruto vs Neji, followed by Gaara vs Sasuke, then Kankuro vs Shino, and Temari vs Shikamaru. Things got a little complicated after that, as there was an odd number of genin. Chiyo and Midori would have to fight, then the winner of that match would fight Dozu, the Sound ninja, in order to move on. Not ideal in the slightest.

Tsukiko frowned, several worries emerging from this lineup. Chiyo and Midori would've probably fought against each other sooner or later, but them being in the first tier was unfortunate.

' _Although,'_ Tsukiko thought, amused. ' _Chiyo doesn't look too upset about it…'_

Indeed, Chiyo was practically bouncing with excitement. Midori seemed calm in comparison, but her smile and bright eyes gave away her own feelings.

' _So, they've been wanting to try their tricks against each other...Now that I think about it, this is actually a really good thing. They'll be able to see what they can do, and learn about each other's strengths and weaknesses in the process.'_

The only real concern she had now was about Sasuke. He'd have to fight against Gaara, who'd already shown his lethality in full force. If Sasuke has any chance of beating him, his Taijutsu and speed would need to increase exponentially.

' _Maybe I'll just keep throwing rocks at him until he can dodge anything that comes his way.'_ Either that, or she'd have to show off her own speed, which was nothing to scoff at, and beat the crap out of him. Either way, between her and Kakashi, Sasuke was going to be far to busy to even think about that slithering creep's power.

Shikamaru raised his hand, interrupting her thoughts. "May I ask you a question?"

The Third Hokage inclined his head. "You may."

"Alright, If this is a tournament, does that mean there's only going to be one winner? I mean, only one of us is going to be able to become a chunin, then?" His eyes narrowed at the thought, obviously thinking it wasn't worth the effort.

"Actually, it's quite the opposite," the old man corrected. "There are going to be several judges for the final rounds, including myself, the Shinobi Leaders, the Kazekage, and the lords from various countries that ultimately will be assigning your missions to you." He paused to let that sink in. "Through this tournament, the judges will be able to make a thorough evaluation of your abilities. They will then decide whether any or all o you possess the qualities required of a chunin. Even if someone loses the first round, they could still become a chunin."

"So there's actually a chance that every one of us who competes in the final selection could become a chunin," Temari summarized.

"Correct. But conversely, there's also a chance that none of you will be chosen. The advantage in fighting more rounds is getting more chances to display your talents in front of the judges who decide your fate." He turned his attention back to Shikamaru. "Does that answer your question, Shikamaru?"

The boy nodded, completely unenthused by the upcoming event.

"I thank you all for your patience," Lord Hokage announced, his voice carrying to those waiting on the catwalk. "Now let us adjourn until next month."

Tsukiko's fists tightened, her own excitement building. ' _One month to get my girls in the best shape of their lives, and to show off my own abilities to Sasuke.'_

Still, there was an uneasy feeling in the air, the sense that a storm was approaching.

' _We need to be ready…'_

* * *

THEN:

"I saw the lineup for this year's Chunin Exams," Danzo started abruptly, in front of Hiruzen, seated in the Hokage's chair. "It seems that Itachi Uchiha and Tsukiko Amaya are not on the list once more."

Hiruzen lifted his eyes from the papers on his desk to look at Danzo curiously. "Now that you mention it, you went out of your way to speak to those two when they graduated, didn't you?"

Danzo's face gave nothing away. "I felt I should lay eyes on the faces of the academy's top graduates of all time."

"I had no idea you were so fixated on the members of the Uchiha clan." The Third Hokage's gaze became more searching, his perceptive intuition not yet filled by his old age.

"It is a loss for the village to make those with such promising futures waste several years."

Hiruzen frowned. "But they can't take the Exams without the recommendation of their supervising jounin."

"But their supervisor, Yuki Minazuki, is below average among the jounin." The corners of Danzo's mouth abruptly shot up. "He's likely jealous of Itachi's and Tsukiko's abilities."

The Third Hokage was quick to defend his fellow shinobi. "Yuki's not that sort of—"

"He _is_ that sort of man," Danzo asserted, as if to beat back Hiruzen's opinion. "Perhaps you are unaware, but that man has already sent several genin more talented than himself back to the academy. He can't do that this time, because that pair so obviously excels. Their names are already well-known throughout the village."

"That's ridiculous," Hiruzen protested, uncomfortable with the idea of one of Konoha's own acting in such an unprofessional and jealous manner.

"He normally doesn't show it," Danzo pressed, driving the point home. "But deep down, Minazuki has a dark nature."

A member of the Foundation had investigated him. The secret Anbu training division under Danzo's direct control, the Foundation had a vast network within Konoha. The thinking, the philosophies of every ninja in the village, what kind of tendencies they had—the Foundation had looked into everything very diligently. All for the security of the village.

If the Uchiha clan's Konoha Military Police Force was an organization to maintain public order on the village surface, then the Foundation was something like a secret police force that maintained order from the underground. Inheriting the undiluted version of Danzo's ideal of protecting the peace with darkness, the Foundation leaned even more strongly in that direction than the Anbu, which was under the Hokage's control. In other words, the Military Police Force and the Foundation were two sides of the same coin.

Sighing heavily, Hiruzen slowly opened his mouth, reluctance to pull rank making him hesitate. "If Yuki won't recommend them, we can simply promote Tsukiko and Itachi to chunin through an official decision."

"It's better for the village to have them take the exams," Danzo said patiently, trying not to give away the victory he could feel in the air.

"Hm?" Hiruzen brought his pipe to his lips.

"The Chunin Exams is a time where the officials from all the countries come together in the same room," Danzo continued. "Which is to say, it's an opportunity to display the future fighting potential of each land. If we demonstrate their exceptional abilities there, it will enhance the threat our village poses to other countries."

"Tsukiko and Itachi are indeed gifted ninja, but do they really have that kind of ability?" The Third Hokage had only seen the surface evaluations of the mission results, which is why he could ask such a question. The only time he'd seen them in action was when he'd granted permission for the two to remain together on a team, and that was before the boy had awakened his Sharingan.

"How could Itachi or Tsukiko demonstrate their true abilities on mission where they are forced to go along with a supervisor and teammates so clearly inferior? Keeping those two buried out in the fields any further will be a loss to the village, such that we may never recover."

Now the Hokage paused, the intuition that had guided him for years beginning to prickle uneasily. "I'm surprised you value the Uchiha clan so highly." Both children were from a clan that, up till now, Danzo had taken every opportunity to force out of the light. To place two members of that same family put in the open was...suspicious.

"They both have precisely such value," Danzo said, an unpleasant smile flashing briefly across his stern features. Hiruzen has no idea of his true intentions, even if he was at least aware that Danzo had ulterior motives. Even the astute Third Hokage would not realize just what those motives were until it was too late.

Konoha and Uchiha. A trump card, to sever the link that had continued since the establishment of the village.

That was what these two talented children were.

But, a lingering question remained. How to get them under his control, to separate them and forge them into his own personal weapons?

That was the issue.

* * *

"We're home!" Tsukiko's bright voice called out happily as she sat down just inside the door. She and Itachi had been training rigorously to make up for the lost time, and it had been a grueling, but wonderful day.

"Itachiii! Tsukikoooo! You're home!" Small hands hugged first Itachi's back, then Tsukiko's as they took their shoes off. "Is your mission today over?"

Itachi stood, smiling warmly as he patted his four-year-old brother's head. "Uh huh."

"You tired?" As always, Sasuke seemed overwhelmed by his desire to talk to his two siblings. Taking Tsukiko's hand, the smaller boy took great, swinging steps and followed his brother as he walked down the hallway to the room they shared.

"A little," Tsukiko answered, glancing at Itachi with a wry smile. The other day, Lady Mikoto had gushed about how, from the minute they leave the house each morning, Sasuke is waiting for them to come home. Itachi had been embarrassed, but also delighted, and Tsukiko had been ecstatic that Sasuke loved her just as much as his actual brother. They both, however, felt a little self-conscious, suddenly taking more care that the ever-watchful eyes of the young boy only saw the best of themselves.

"I wanna go on missions too!" Sasuke announced, practically bouncing on Itachi's heels as he dragged Tsukiko along.

"Still too early for you," Itachi replied, laughing as he walked.

Tsukiko giggled, trying not to accidentally step on either of the Uchiha boys as she was pulled forward.

Their conversation came to a screeching halt when the sliding door to their right opened suddenly. Lord Fugaku's room.

"You're home?" His voice, sour in tone, reminded Itachi of those hateful meetings he'd been attending.

"Yes," Itachi replied, losing all expression. He took a step back, unconsciously trying to block Tsukiko and Sasuke from his father's view and words.

Lord Fugaku came out of the room with a calculated look on his face, standing in front of his son.

Tsukiko, unaware of Itachi's protective stance, scooted past Sasuke to stand next to the older Uchiha boy, curious as to what Lord Fugaku was going to say.

"Lord Hokage called me in today to talk about the two of you." The strange way he said "Lord Hokage," and the visible bitterness on the older man's features made Tsukiko glance uneasily at her partner.

"About us?" Itachi spoke quickly, keeping the attention on him instead of the confused girl to his right.

"On the recommendation of village officials, he wants you both to take the Chunin Exams this year. The other examiners will of course be working in groups of three. Naturally this will put you in a difficult position, but…" Fugaku closed his eyes and lowered his face for a moment, before lifting it again to look straight at Itachi. "I told Lord Hokage you would both take part."

"Th-Thank you…" Itachi stammered uncharacteristically, overwhelmed by this sudden development.

Tsukiko, on the other hand, practically lit up. "Thank you, Lord Fugaku!"

For so long now, she'd endured a disappointment she couldn't completely push aside, no matter how hard she'd tried to force herself to accept the situation. But those days were finally coming to an end. Privately, she'd wondered how many more years she and Itachi would have to continue as genin, stuck on a team that never improved. But Itachi had been right! The village had noticed them! Already, she could see the shroud of heavy clouds over her heart clearing away.

Impulsively she hugged the older man, her excitement getting the best of her.

Fugaku's face betrayed his surprise for a brief moment, but he quickly recovered and returned her hug, a fondness in his eyes. "The village officials recommended you two directly, instead of your supervising jounin. So make sure you do it right." He smiled.

Tsukiko nodded firmly, looking back at Itachi with bright eyes. "We will!"

Itachi relaxed, proof that his father, at least, didn't hate the young girl putting him more at ease. It was easy to forget that that hateful atmosphere hovering over the meetings didn't necessarily follow him around.

"Hey, what's happening with Ita and Kiko?" Wanting to be a part of the conversation, Sasuke wedged himself between them and looked up at his father.

"You hurry, and be a brave ninja like your brother and Tsukiko, too," Fugaku said, reaching down to lift his younger son up into his arms.

Sasuke's smile wavered slightly for a short moment. "All right!"

"Good boy." Sasuke's innocent grin brought another smile to Fugaku's face, before he turned back to the older children, his voice purposefully casual.

"Apparently, it was Danzo Shimura who pushed hard for you to take the Chunin Exams."

' _Danzo Shimura…'_ Tsukiko's mind conjured up the image of the shadowed face she had seen on the day of their graduation. She shivered, feeling a lingering chill just from the memory of that man.

"What do think of the Anbu?" Itachi asked carefully. In his father's voice was a darkness, out of place with his sunny grin.

Tsukiko felt her smile begin to wane, her uneasiness returning. It was almost like Lord Fugaku and Itachi were speaking in a code of some kind.

"Boys! Tsukiko!" Lady Mikoto's voice came from the opposite end of the hall. "It's almost supper time!"

"First, the Chunin Exams," Lord Fugaku said cheerfully. "As long as you show off your true abilities, you'll get through them without any problem. We'll talk after that." Still holding Sasuke, the older man disappeared toward the dining room where Itachi's mother was waiting, leaving his ominous words hanging in the air.

Itachi took a step forward, prepared to follow his father, his mind far away.

Tsukiko had the sudden impression that the hall was split at the end, light and darkness awaiting on the path that stretched out into the future. Before Itachi could take another step, she caught his hand, hit with the awful feeling that she and Itachi would someday find themselves on different sides.

When he turned back to her, she forced herself to smile. "Let's go together," she said cheerfully.

The young boy nodded, understanding that she wasn't talking about going to the dining room. "Together."

And so, the two children began to walk down the hallway, one filled with determination to follow the other, no matter the path, and the other's mind filled with grim resignation.

* * *

Now:

"Separate training?" Chiyo asked, cocking her head in confusion.

The two genin and their teachers were out in the woods, in the clearing where they'd done most of their training up to this point. It was the day after the preliminary rounds had concluded, and both girls were refreshed and ready to go, the only signs of their ordeal being the small cuts and bruises that littered their arms and faces.

Tsukiko nodded. "The way it stands, you two are going to be fighting against each other. It would defeat the purpose of training if you both saw what the other was doing." She stretched her arms, cracking her neck. It was stiff after sleeping awkwardly on a chair in Sasuke's hospital room, but she'd refused to leave after hearing that Kabuto, that genin whom she _knew_ wasn't trustworthy, had tried to either assassinate or kidnap Sasuke from his room on Orochimaru's orders.

To say she'd been pissed was an understatement, and the nurses, being too scared to make her leave, had no choice but to let her remain. The sight of her, glaring with red eyes at anyone who entered the room, seemed to convey the message that she _would not be leaving_ any time soon.

In fact, it was only Kakashi's arrival and solemn vow that he wouldn't be leaving Sasuke's side that allowed Tsukiko the freedom to be here, training. They'd decided that Kakashi, as Sasuke's official teacher, would take over the bulk of his training this month. After all, Tsukiko had her own responsibilities.

"That makes sense," Midori nodded her head thoughtfully. "I wouldn't want Chiyo to see my new moves before I get the chance to try them out."

"Exactly!" Masuko grinned and pulled out two small pieces of paper. "To that end, we need to see what your primary chakra nature is. Once we know that, we can start working on advanced Ninjutsu. I noticed some of our opponents are using really high-level stuff, so we can't fall behind!" She handed a paper to Tsukiko. "For example, I primarily use water chakra, so when I run my chakra through the paper…"

The paper in her hand suddenly became wet, like it had been dipped in water.

"Lighting nature will wrinkle, Earth will crumble away, Fire will burst into flames, Wind will cut, and Water soaks," Tsukiko explained.

"What does it do when you use your chakra, Tsukiko-Sensei?" Midori asked with wide eyes.

"I'm glad you asked." Tsukiko held up the paper and waited.

The page tore down the middle, one side wrinkling before it exploded into flames, and the other side getting wet before crumbling away.

"I have every nature in me, splitting my chakra into five distinct categories. As such, I can't use advanced Ninjutsu, with a few exceptions, like Summoning. But, I can still work with you girls on perfecting your chakra control and working with the jutsu you have to make them stronger. So, go ahead and take these." Tsukiko handed each genin a chakra paper. "Try it out, and see what happens."

Chiyo concentrated, her brow furrowed. A few seconds later, her paper began to crumble away.

"Earth!" She shouted excitedly, turning to Midori.

The blond girl held up two perfectly sliced pieces of paper, grinning. "And mine is Wind."

"Hmm…" Masuko rubbed her jaw. "Wind is pretty scarce around here, so you'll be working with Tsukiko, Midori. As for you, Chiyo, Earth happens to be my second chakra nature, so we can definitely do some heavy training." She gave her a thumbs up. "Time to get to work! I want you guys to fight like you've never fought before!"

Tsukiko grinned, giving Midori a wink. "While those two run around throwing boulders, we'll be working with Wind. I have several ideas about how we can incorporate it with your chakra threads…"

Midori nodded, hesitating slightly. "Okay, sounds good."

The white-haired jounin smiled understandingly. As excited as she was to take part in the tournament, Midori was a healer, not a fighter. It would be difficult for her to advance if she didn't get over that.

' _The Third Exam has officially begun!'_

* * *

"Alright, Chiyo!" Masuko straightened clapping her hands together as she stood in front of her student. "Now that those two are gone, let's get to work!"

"Yes ma'am!" Chiyo shouted, clenching her fists with excitement.

Masuko smiled, marveling once again at the fortune she'd had. Never did she believe she'd find herself in a community as warm and happy as the Leaf Village. It wasn't perfect, not by a long shot, but it was so different from the fear and blood that seemed to permanently permeate the Mist Village.

After Kisame and Zabuza had abandoned her, she'd all but given up on having a happy life like she'd talked about. She hadn't wanted much, just some comrades she could depend on, a home of her own, maybe a few kids someday, once the Mist settled down and the bloodlust began to fade.

So when she was betrayed by the Mizukage, an ironic gesture, as Yagura had zero tolerance for betrayal against him, she had been ready to accept death.

' _Hmph, Yagura….'_ She'd been told that he'd been killed recently, not that the Mist was very forthcoming with information on the death of its leader. And maybe the "Bloody Mist" would be able to regain its strength now that the little tyrant was dead. Still, she was surprised to find that she had felt a passing regret at his loss, the lingering traces of her alliance rearing its head. The Mist had been her home, and she had several fond memories of the place. It was only after Kisame left that things had really gone wrong.

' _That bastard.'_ One day he'd just left, amidst accusations of trying to overthrow the government and proof of several assassinations of important leaders in the Land of Water. There was no goodbye, no warning, no anything. He'd left, taking Samehada with him, and leaving behind a stupid girl who couldn't forget about him.

And then came Zabuza's little scheme. There was suspicion in the village that the Mizukage was being controlled by someone, and Kisame's abrupt turn had only strengthened this idea. So the idiot had tried to assassinate the Mizukage and failed, leading to yet another of the Seven Swordsmen being lost. Of course, being friends with both traitors had ruined Masuko's reputation, and erased any possibility that she too might be granted one of the infamous weapons of her village.

The rest is history. She'd been ambushed by her own people, her father's katana snapped by the damned Anbu, and would've been killed, had she not stumbled close enough to Land of Fire territory, getting the attention of a passing Leaf squad on return from a separate mission. It truly was a stroke of luck.

And now, she had nearly everything she'd ever wanted. A home, comrades, students of her own...it seemed too good to be true, like any moment she would wake up, and she'd be back there, bleeding out in that damned forest, surrounded by masked faces exuding barely-concealed hatred. But, until that moment came, she was going to protect this peaceful little village with her life, making sure that the ninja of the future weren't subjected to the horrors of her past.

And that began with the grinning girl before her, so full of life and ambition. It was hard not to be motivated when someone like that admired someone like her. It made Masuko want to be a better person, to never let her students down.

"First things first," Masuko began, cracking her knuckles. "Let's figure out what kind of fighter you want to be." Holding up three fingers, she quickly explained. "There's the long-range weapon specialist, which would work well against someone like that Temari girl. Dodging her fan is easier from far away, but you have to be careful, as Tenten discovered. Temari has trained to get up close and personal."

She put down a finger. "Mid-range fighting is like Kakashi and Sasuke. The Sharingan works best with a little distance, and a mid-range fighter can also become a short-range fighter easily. Take Tsukiko for example. Her elemental control is most effective from further away, but get too caught up on that and you'll miss when she comes in for the kill." Masuko grinned, the memory of their first fight flashing briefly through her mind. "Mid to short-range fighters have the most fluid skill sets, and are usually sneaky bastards."

Another finger went down. "Finally, you have fighters like me. Short-range, up close and personal. Naruto, Lee, the Hyuga boy, all of them are close-range fighters. For me, I like a good sword fight or weapons clash. Not very ninja-like, fighting out in the open, but definitely the best way to inflict the most damage."

Chiyo nodded slowly, frowning. "Let's see…" she murmured, crossing her arms. "Midori uses her chakra threads to fight, but she had trouble in the forest when people got inside her range. So that means short-range tactics are the best against her. And if I want to beat Gaara, I'll need to get past that sand somehow, meaning, again, I'll need to get close. So, the answer's pretty obvious." She smirked. "I'll follow in my teacher's footsteps."

Masuko fang glinted as she smiled evilly. "Good choice, considering I already taught you the basics of my chakra armor. And using Earthstyle, I have a few tactics that'll boost your speed as well as your punches." She cocked her head critically. "I don't have the time or the patience to teach you how to use a sword without stabbing yourself through, but you seem more like a brawler anyway."

The younger girl's cheeks darkened. "Yeah, I've always been pretty good with my fists over any real weapon."

"Sounds good," Masuko agreed cheerily, sliding into a crouch, her fists up. "Now, pay attention, because I'm about to get serious!"

* * *

"So, Windstyle is fast and cutting," Tsukiko began, her eyes turning gold. "I primarily use it for reading signatures and movements around me, but it also helps to sharpen weapons, or add an extra burst of speed to projectiles. And that's the part I want to focus on today."

Midori nodded, looking uncomfortable. "Okay, how do I do that?"

Tsukiko smiled warmly, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry. What I have in mind will help with your medical jutsu as well."

The blond genin brightened slightly. "Really?"

"Of course," Tsukiko replied, crossing her arms. "As you know, healing and fighting are opposites on paper, but there can be some overlap in practice." She pulled out a kunai knife, purposefully pricking her finger. "This knife is deadly sharp, but it can do a whole lot more than just kill. What if it's cutting a projectile out of someone, or being used in a surgery? A sharp tool is a necessary item for a healer, and your Windstyle will ensure that you're never without one."

"Yeah…" Midori paused as she thought about what Tsukiko was saying. "I've never really seen that side of things. My weapons can also be tools for saving people…"

To the older woman's relief, Midori seemed to relax, more comfortable with the idea of training. "Okay, so you're going to show me how to sharpen my kunai knives?"

Tsukiko shook her head. "Nope. Instead, we're going to be working on sharpening...your chakra threads."

"What?!" Midori took a step back. "But I can barely control the threads as they are! If I have to worry about keeping them sharp, I'll never—"

"Stop doubting yourself, Midori," Tsukiko interrupted gently, frowning at the panicked girl. "I've been training you for months, and I know your limits. Yes, your threads aren't as small or as invisible as you'd like them to be, but you know the basics, and you control them well! Think about it, if you can sharpen the threads, which will make them finer, then your Chakra Stitching technique will become faster and more medically efficient. The threads themselves will be your needles!"

Midori paused, her doubtful expression betraying how little she believed in her own abilities. "Okay, Tsukiko-Sensei, I'll try."

The older woman smiled, nodding her head. "That's all you can do. If you want to beat Chiyo, who will almost definitely be training in close-combat hand-to-hand, based on her nature and Masuko's skill set, then you'll need to use Windstyle to sharpen and speed up your threads. That is how you can win, and move on to fight the others."

Midori nodded, determination overtaking her fear. "You're right! Besides, there's someone I want to fight against…"

' _So, she wants to impress Neji, does she?'_ Tsukiko bit her lip to stop herself from grinning. ' _Atta girl.'_

"Alright," she said aloud, gold eyes flashing. "In that case, let's get started!"

* * *

Then:

"You have one hour to complete the test," the proctor, a man with sandy blond hair and a stern expression explained. "Begin!"

Sitting in the room for the First Exam, a written test, Tsukiko's eyes scanned the document in front of her with growing excitement and relief. This exam was easy! The proctor had insinuated that the point of this exam was to use ninja skills to cheat without getting taught by the examiners, but Tsukiko's talents weren't just physical.

Ever since she was little, she had devoured books and scrolls from the academy and Lord Fugaku's library with perfect clarity. That habit had only intensified in preparation for this exam, along with her normal training. So Tsukiko had all kinds of knowledge and data memorized, partly in preparation for becoming a strong shinobi, but mostly just because she was interested in this world of theirs.

The entire history of shinobi, beginning with the Sage of Six Paths. Alliances, treaties, laws of uniformity among different lands, chakra fundamentals, advanced techniques, practical strategies in fighting, Taijutsu theory, Ninjutsu uses and hand signs, Genjutsu control and awareness, kekkei genkai, Tailed Beasts, ninja beasts, Summoning, overview of Sage barriers and natural energy fundamentals, and a variety of documents, books, theses. These were all subjects Tsukiko and Itachi had studied in order to realize their dream.

Thus, there was no need for either of them to cheat.

A balance between brain and brawn. This was the most important element of an ideal ninja.

When there was first a clear mind, superior physical abilities could be amply shown off. But no matter how skilled in ninja arts the body was, if a shinobi was unable to make appropriate decisions, failure was almost inevitable. And in the world of the ninja, failure was directly linked to death.

Tsukiko paused, Tenma's face flashing briefly in her mind. Biting her lip, she wiped nonexistent dirt off her paper, banishing the unwelcome reminder that, smart as she was, she'd already failed her team once. Her test was already ninety percent complete, and she finished quickly, blocking out any further distraction.

A few minutes later, she flipped the page over, glancing out of the corner of her eye at Itachi, who was still writing something on the last question. Tsukiko grinned victoriously. She'd won again.

' _I wonder how everyone else is cheating…?'_

Sitting back, Tsukiko examined her fellow genin as one after another was ordered to leave, having been caught. Slowly blinking her now golden eyes, she concentrated on the wind currents, sending her chakra out around her like a bubble. It was a new technique she and Itachi had been working on, and allowed her to get a mental picture of her opponent's movements.

Several were using tools, or sending out their own chakra to influence/spy on each other, while others were using sneakier methods, like tapping out answers, or using ninja beasts. There were a few other Uchiha genin present, their Sharingans activated as they copied hand movements of hidden chunin. Tsukiko took careful note of the three Uchiha other than Itachi. They were her ideal opponents.

And everyone else was an obstacle, or rival. If she and Itachi, who was now complete and studying the others as she was, could figure out and counter their skills now, they would be able to choose the most advantageous circumstances for a fight.

Everyone else was in three-person groups. They only had each other. It was quite plausible, a near certainty even, they they would end up in a three-against-two situation. By using this time to gather information, as well as build up chakra, Itachi and Tsukiko had already begun fighting their way out of that unfavorable situation.

"Time!" The proctor called out, nodding approvingly at those left, about half of the original entrees. "Put your pencils down. Everyone still here, go to the Second Exam. The results of the test will be announced once the Second Exam is complete."

"Question!" One of the test-takers raised his hand, waiting for the proctor's nod of approval to continue. "Does that mean that even if we pass the Second Exam, we won't be able to proceed to the Third Exam, depending on our score on the First?"

The proctor crossed his arms, nodding firmly. "That is what it means, yes."

The examinees all began protesting at once.

"Quiet!" The proctor roared, glaring at them. "You are on the road to becoming chunin! And once you are chunin, you will be in the position of leading a team. Not all missions yield immediate results. There will sometimes be cases where you will turn all your mental energies toward the job at hand, while you're waiting on another result. During this exam, you should have expended every effort. In which case, trust in your own abilities, and fight in the Second Exam with all your might!"

The rousing cry of the jounin left the genin speechless, each confronted by the reality of the Chunin Exams, and the careful meaning behind each test.

Seeing the resolution in their faces, the stern proctor's lips twitched upwards. "Good. Now, off you go to the Second Exam."

Tsukiko stood obediently, waiting for Itachi while the words of the jounin echoed in her ears.

* * *

"Not like you two can surround all three of us," the boy said with a grin. He stood, blocking their path with two teammates behind him in a triangle formation. The boy had short black hair that covered one eye and a cocky grin as he stared down the children that didn't even reach his shoulders. The headband glinting at his forehead marked him and his teammates as genin from Kirigakure.

Itachi glanced back at Tsukiko, who was smiling calmly, a scroll in her hand. As her eyes registered their headbands, her smile hardened and her fists clenched.

' _Bad luck that they're from the Hidden Mist,'_ he thought sighing. ' _For them, anyway.'_

Those who would become chunin were scattered about the area known as the forty-fourth training ground, nicknamed the "Forest of Death." The scroll in the white-haired girl's hands had the character for "Heaven" written in on it in bold, black calligraphy.

"Taking the chunin exams with just the two of you is suicide!" A different boy shouted from behind his leader. This one had short, spiky brown hair and a fresh cut on his cheek.

And then the ear-splittingly high-pitched laughter of the girl came, her shoulder-length brown hair bouncing.

Itachi looked at the boy standing in front of him, the most assertive of the group, maybe fifteen or sixteen. He was definitely the leader.

"If you hand over the scroll like a good girl, we won't kill you," he began smugly, his attention on Tsukiko, standing a step or two behind Itachi. "But if you're gonna fight back, then I can't promise anything." The boy had the black "Earth" scroll that paired with Tsukiko's in his hand.

The goal of the Second Exam was to reach the tower in the center of the training ground, with both Heaven and Earth scrolls in hand. In small squads of three-person cells, the genin were given one of these scrolls and sent scattering throughout the training ground, with the mission to relieve another team of the opposite scroll that completed the set. After getting both scrolls, they had to make it through the Forest of Death, with its man-eating beasts, poisonous insects, and all manner of dangerous creatures, to reach the tower standing in the center.

The time limit was five days. In other words, the examination was challenging enough that this time limit provided yet another obstacle.

Yet, on the very first day, Itachi and Tsukiko were suddenly attacked by the enemy, the Mist shinobi before them. Which was, of course, according to plan.

Rather than making the foolish move of searching for the matching scroll, the young pair had decided to head straight for the tower. Just as they wanted an Earth scroll, their opponents wanted the Heaven scroll. If they moved toward the tower, their enemies would surely come to them.

The Kirigakure ninja had already confirmed that Tsukiko was holding the Heaven scroll—she had deliberately held the scroll out in the open as they walked to the tower, just for that purpose. No, rather than the other way around, it was these three who'd fallen into Itachi's trap.

"So, three against two. Be good, and—"

"The usual rule in order to qualify for this test says that you must be on a three-man team." Itachi's calm voice cut off the boy in front of him. "So why is it just the two of us?"

"Maybe your teammate ditched you," the girl called out from the left, like she was making fun of him. The boy on the right laughed.

Tsukiko scoffed, turning her head slightly to look at her. "The other one is waiting in ambush. Can't you figure out that much, at least?"

Careless smile still on her lips, the girl's face grew pale.

"Relax. It was just the two of us from the start," Itachi said, his gaze never leaving the leader. "But it seems that the only conclusion you can come to from this three-against-two situation is that it's to your advantage. As a leader and as a chunin, you're a failure."

"Y-You watch your mou—"

"You're even using our childish appearances as fuel for your carelessness." Itachi was goading him, using a psychological attack before the actual fighting began. If the enemy already believed they had lost, then it would be so once blows were exchanged.

"Hey, Kiruru, let's just finish him already," the boy in the rear called, sounding uneasy.

The leader, Kiruru, swallowed with a gulp the saliva building up in his mouth, sweat running down his forehead.

Now Tsukiko spoke up. "Why doesn't it make you uncomfortable that we're here alone? Why haven't you considered the possibility that there's a reason two nine-year-olds were allowed to compete with you? Don't you think there's some meaning behind the fact that we were walking around in plain sight, not even trying to hide our scroll?"

She stared at him unblinkingly, that same calm smile in place. "Didn't you consider…" Her eyes turned red. "That we might be dangerous?"

"Kiruru!" This time it was the girl, trembling.

The Mist genin were starting to lose themselves in an unfathomable fear.

"G-Get them!" Kiruru half-shrieked, half-shouted, and shuriken were launched at Itachi and Tsukiko from three different directions.

In the next instant, the leader ran at his right, the other boy at his left. The girl leapt up above, aiming for Tsukiko's head. They were caught in an attack from both sides, and if they fled upward, the girl would attack.

'Physical Fundamentals for the Three-Person Cell, _chapter one, paragraph three. Such a childish move.'_

Neither of the Leaf genin moved.

The shuriken hit both of them with a sickening noise, countless black handles stabbing every part of their bodies.

Without pausing, the two boys on either side slammed into the two children, forcing new kunai deep into their bellies.

Blood jetted out of Itachi's mouth, and he turned his head to see the same thing happening to Tsukiko, her eyes wide with pain and surprise.

The two boys yanked their knives out and took a half step back. Instantly, the girl landed on Tsukiko's shoulders and plunged a dagger through the crown of her head.

"Got her!" She cried out happily.

Itachi and Tsukiko burst open.

Each and every one of the black fragments scattering in all directions turned into crows. In a cacophony of caws, they started to peck at the heads of the three older ninja.

Itachi watched for a while from the top of a remarkably tall tree nearby, observing the silly way his enemies were being taken down, all three frantically trying to beat the crows back, while covering their faces with their arms. For a brief moment, he felt pity for the older genin, but then he remembered the victorious look on the girl's face as she "killed" Tsukiko, and the feeling passed. They were his fellow shinobi, and he should respect them as such by not holding back.

Tsukiko, watching from a neighboring tree, seemed to be concentrating on something. She gave Itachi the signal that she was ready to go.

Silently, he dropped down in front of them.

"Release!" The crows disappeared at his cry.

Not understanding what was happening, the three ninja stood, dumbfounded, their eyes finding Itachi at once.

"Be good and hand over the scroll." With a slight smile at the ironic role reversal, Itachi held out his hand toward the leader. "If you do, we'll let you go."

"D-Don't underestimate us." Kiruru dropped to a crouch and began weaving signs. The boy and girl to his left and right also wove the same signs. "Got it?"

Itachi sighed. Already, they had forgotten Tsukiko, still up in the tree. And, focused as they were on Itachi, they didn't hear her approach from behind.

"Right!" Kiruru's teammates responded.

"Water Style!" The Mist genin shouted, and that's as far as they got.

The wall of flames that abruptly materialized before them, twisting like a living creature to enclose the small group, scared the three senseless, to the point where they actually forgot to activate their own techniques.

At a speed three times that at which the three were weaving signs, Itachi had used used Firestyle: Fireball Jutsu, to create a massive flame that Tsukiko had taken control of. He'd used the chakra that he'd been building up the whole time, during the First Exam, to the start of the Second, and the result was that the field of view of the opposing team had been swallowed up by flames in an instant.

His only concern was that Tsukiko, having seen a Mist village headband for the first time since her parents were killed, would overdue it and accidentally hurt someone. But, he needn't have worried. Tsukiko wielded the fire with such control, that it remained far enough away that the Mist genin didn't get hurt. The flames were only meant to be threatening.

This was a test. There was no need to kill or even injure anyone. All they needed was for their opponents to lose heart.

And, at the sight of the white-haired girl merely waving her hand to walk through the circle of flame, her eyes glowing red, they did indeed feel fear.

Itachi found himself watching the way her hair reflected the orange light of the fire, the brightness in her eyes, and genuine smile on her face as she spun, extinguishing the flames with one graceful movement. Her exhilaration for controlling the elements so flawlessly never ceased to make him feel an appreciation for his own skills and abilities, but watching her now, Itachi felt his cheeks darken, and the now-familiar warmth in his chest.

"Sorry to startle you," Tsukiko said, grinning at the older genin. "But my friend and I are kinda in a hurry. I'll take your scroll, please."

Legs trembling, almost giving out from under them from fear, the three still managed to stay on their feet somehow. A thin veil of tears welled up in the eyes that stared at Tsukiko.

"If you still want to fight, I don't mind." Itachi closed the distance between them, moving to stand by Tsukiko. "But if you do, then this time, I'll be forced to pull out my trump card."

"Wh-What?" Kiruru asked, looking about ready to burst into tears.

Itachi stared at him and focused his chakra into his eyes. His field of view was colored red, and the waves of chakra flowing through the bodies of the three before him began to hazily come into view.

"Sh-Sharingan," the boy next to Kiruru muttered.

The threatened tears began to spill down the cheeks of the stouthearted leader.

"I don't know if you've seen eyes like this before, but if you're a ninja, you should know what they are," Itachi said.

The girl moved her pointed jaw up and down several times. The Mist genin found themselves completely ruled by the fear of death.

"Your techniques don't work on me."

"H-Have mercyyyyyyy!" Kiruru pressed his forehead to the ground, and then reached a trembling hand into his bag, digging around for something.

Itachi stared at him for a moment, his expressionless face not revealing the distaste he felt with himself as these three ninja cowered for their lives. While this was better than hurting him, breaking down an opponent in such a manner felt like he was the bully. Itachi's only consolation was that he at least took no pleasure in these proceedings.

Finally, the boy thrust the Earth scroll at him, his wide eyes pleading.

Itachi took the scroll slowly. "As long as you all understand." He handed the scroll to Tsukiko before sending a little chakra into his legs. Body Flicker Technique. Itachi appeared behind Kiruru and brought the edge of his flat hand down on his neck. "I can't have you attacking us from behind. Take a little nap here."

Kiruru collapsed on the ground, and Itachi swiftly moved behind the girl and the boy, delivering similar blows to each of them.

The two Heaven and Earth scrolls were together. Now they just had to head for the tower at the center of the training ground.

Tsukiko's eyes turned green, and she brought her hands together, creating a tent-like structure out of rock for the three to rest under. "There we go. Now hopefully the animals and bugs won't bother them too much."

She turned back to Itachi, taking his hand in hers. "Come on! I want to be the first one finished!" Her gaze turned sly. "You know, like how I was for the First Exam…"

Her laughter at Itachi's unamused expression echoed through the trees for several minutes after the two had already left in a blur of motion.

* * *

A.N. Phew! Done! And did these flashbacks line up well or what? In the next chapter, a reunion with an old friend from Tsukiko's past, some insight into Chiyo, and the start of the final rounds! Now, bear with me on those. I'm not going to write out each one like I did for Gaara vs Lee. I'll just go back to my summaries, until Midori and Chiyo fight. And of course, the Tsukiko of the past has to have her fight as well!

Expect the next chapter in two weeks at the latest, and please review!

Thanks for reading!


	17. Chapter 15

A.N. Haha! I managed to get this written in one week, which I honestly didn't think I could. My college starts early (in two weeks), so I've been busy with all the back-to-school prep. The next chapter will likely take two weeks, but we're getting into an exciting section! This is mostly flashback, but what stuff we do have in the present is pretty important, so I hope you enjoy!

Thank you so much Jessielric and Arisu003 for commenting and theorizing on every chapter! Your questions make me think about my story in a new way, as well as how I can improve my overall plot line!

Please rate and review! I literally hang on to any comment like a lifeline!

* * *

THEN:

"Time elapsed in the Second Exam: four hours, thirty-seven minutes. This is a new record for the exam held in the Forty-Fourth Training Ground. Taking into consideration that the exam is based on three-person cells, this record is astounding."

As he listened carefully to the weirdly hard voice of the Anbu in the white tiger mask, Danzo smiled faintly. "That's what happens when you graduate from the academy in a single year. Nothing strange at all about those two managing this." He stood from his spot at his desk, the white tiger mask nodding in the corner of his vision. "It's about time for the Third Exam to start. We should be on our way."

"With regards to that, I have a single report." The man stopped Danzo as he was about to step forward.

"What?"

"The genin team of our village that were to be their opponents in the first round defaulted."

"Afraid of their combined power?" Danzo's lips twitched upwards again, feeling unusually cheerful.

"Naturally."

The old man tossed his head back toward the ceiling and laughed loudly. The white tiger stayed silent, waiting for his master's words. "I've thought any number of times how much better it would be if Itachi wasn't an Uchiha, like the girl. But I've never felt it so keenly now."

"The Uchihas have their own utility."

"I don't need someone like you to tell me that," Danzo replied, starting the long walk to the arena. "Who is Itachi's opponent in the second round?"

"If the first battle has concluded as it should, it will be a Kumogakure genin who advances. Nemui."

"'Sleepy?' What a ridiculous name."

"The boy is known as Nemui Shunmino. Among the young ones of the Hidden Cloud, he is quite a popular ninja."

"A shinobi with a pseudonym is second-rate," Danzo snorted. "A true ninja does not need to hide their name so."

The man walking alongside him nodded.

"How will the pseudonym-free Itachi Uchiha fight this genin with the foolish name of Sleepy Hibernation whoever? I am indeed looking forward to it." The old man paused, sensing that his subordinate had more to say. "And what of Tsukiko Amaya?" He asked shrewdly. "Who is to be her opponent?"

Wordlessly, the tiger-masked ninja handed the form to Danzo.

Unbandaged eye widening slightly as it quickly scanning the page, Danzo felt more excited than he had in years. "Perfect. I couldn't have hoped for better. Now we'll see how Tsukiko's skills measure up when she isn't paired with an Uchiha."

As the older man composed himself, the masked ninja said nothing, his training making sure that Danzo couldn't see the chill that snaked down his spine at the gleeful smile of his superior.

* * *

NOW:

"Damn!" Tsukiko cursed, breathing heavily as she stared at the destruction in front of her.

Trees cracked and burnt, some even snapped in half. The ground black and charred, a few small fires burning away at what little green remained in the small area of scorched forest. The warm smell of a campfire floated pleasantly in the air, but did nothing to ease her frustration.

After her training session with Midori yesterday, Tsukiko left the young girl to master her new technique on her own for a bit, promising to check in later the next afternoon. In the meantime, she planned on doing a little training herself.

All morning, she'd been working on her Lightning control. Kakashi had mentioned that he was going to teach _that move_ to Sasuke, and she wanted to be able to counter it. Not to mention, having incomplete control of her Gensogan was unacceptable. It was her advantage over Itachi who wasn't aware she'd gained a new element. The problem was, using Lightning was exhausting, the strain of having to juggle two elements at once not working properly.

"Having a bit of trouble, I see."

Tsukiko's head whipped around at the voice, and her face lit up when she spotted the owner. "Jiraiya-Sensei!"

It had been several years since she'd last seen him, not since he'd come to the Uchiha funeral three years ago, but he hadn't changed much. Long, spiky white hair, red and green sage outfit with wooden shoes, and a kind face currently smiling at her while he leaned against a tree, the Third Hokage standing next to him.

"Lord Third," she greeted respectfully, bowing her head before turning back to the old sage. "What are you doing here? Come to see the Third Exam?" Her eyes narrowed, and her fists clenched slightly. "Or are you here to deal with Orochimaru?"

Jiraiya put his hands up peacefully, laughing awkwardly. "Hey now, no need to get worked up!" He grinned, winking. "I'm just here to pass along some information I picked up on my travels." He gestured to the old man next to him. "And Lord Third thought it was important enough to tell you about right away."

Tsukiko cocked her head, suitably intrigued. "What is it?"

The Third Hokage produced his pipe, already lit, and took a deep breath, releasing the smoke when he exhaled. "The missing shrine of Akihiro Amaya has been located."

The young woman's breath caught, her eyes widening. "Are you sure? It's not another one of his fakes?"

Akihiro Amaya, Tsukiko's great-great-grandfather, had been a child when the village was first created. He left when he was thirteen, and traveled the world as a historian. Along the way, he built many shrines, safe places for those who wished to study and live in peace. But no one had ever found the Great Shrine, the place where the entire history of the Amaya clan, along with all of Akihiro's research, was said to be held.

"Positive," Jiraiya confirmed. "I saw it myself. A group of researchers from the Land of Fire happened across it while mapping out one of the lesser-known forests. It's far larger than any of the others, and no one can get past the front room. It's locked by a large door with chakra encryption. I'm certain that only an Amaya can get in."

He grinned. "Luckily for us, I happened to be in the area. One of the researcher's contacted me, hoping I'd be able to bring you back with me."

"And all these researchers want is the joy of having discovered the missing shrine?" Tsukiko asked, raising her eyebrow. Most "researchers" and "explorers" these days were nothing but graverobbers.

"It doesn't matter," Lord Third stared firmly. "Unlike all the other shrines, Akihiro's Great Shrine was to be only visited by the Amaya clan. There is no claim to anything found within, unless you are of his blood."

"Not that they didn't try," Jiraiya added. "But Akihiro put several traps in place for those who try to break in, and let's just say some of those researchers aren't getting out of a hospital bed any time soon." He chuckled. "At any rate, I know you can't go before the Exams are over, but here's the map with their location."

Tsukiko took the rolled up paper, a flutter of excitement in her chest. There could be anything in that shrine, medicine, powerful items, a complete history of her people. It was tempting to go now...but…

"Hey." The old sage put a hand on her shoulder. "That's the face of someone with too many worries on their mind. The shrine can wait, so don't think you need to drop everything and go. You're a young and beautiful woman now, so lighten up! Everything will work out!"

The white-haired woman smiled gratefully. "Thank you, Jiraiya-Sensei."

He stepped back, rubbing the back of his head. "Anyway, I have to get back to Naruto. That little idiot's been badgering me for training nonstop." He waved. "See ya!" And with a puff of white smoke, he was gone.

"So Jiraiya-Sensei is training Naruto…" Tsukiko mused, putting the scroll in the pocket of her jounin vest. "And Kakashi is training Sasuke…" she grinned, shaking her head. "I'd better make sure my girls are ready."

The Third Hokage chuckled, gesturing to the burnt forest. "It appears you are also making sure you yourself are in top form."

Tsukiko ducked her head in embarrassment, her cheeks pink. "I just can't seem to figure out Lightning," she admitted. "It takes a lot out of me to use Fire and Wind to make it, and even more to control it."

The old man frowned, taking his pipe out of his mouth. "Why are you synthetically producing lightning instead of just using your chakra to do it, like you do with fire?"

She shrugged sheepishly. "Every time I try, I end up making fire. The two are very similar, and I'm not familiar enough with chakra-based lightning to control it."

Nodding his head, the Third Hokage hummed in thought. "Very well."

A faint buzzing filled the air, and Tsukiko felt the hairs at the back of her neck stand up as the Hokage's arm was engulfed in lightning.

She had a split-second to react before the electricity left his arm, arcing toward her. Eyes white, she held up her hand to meet the sparking energy, and gasped as she felt it enter her system. Instinctively, she turned with the flow of the energy, holding out her other hand to send it shooting into another tree.

The lightning snapped the old oak in half, its trunk charred and black. It fell over with a heavy thud, echoing in the silence of the forest.

Breath leaving her in heavy pants, Tsukiko turned back to the old man, her body feeling energized and alive. "What...What was that for?!" She demanded, placing a hand on her chest to feel her heart pounding.

The Third Hokage put his pipe back in his mouth, rubbing one of his shoulders. "That was me letting you feel what chakra-based lightning feels like. I imagine you'll have a better idea of how to create it now." He smiled, turning away. "It's nice to feel like a sensei again."

And with that, he vanished, leaving a bewildered woman standing in the middle of a smoking forest, her hand tingling like she'd hit something hard.

* * *

THEN:

"To repeat, there are absolutely no rules," The proctor declared, his chest puffed up importantly as every eye in the stands surrounding the battle field focused on him. Important guests from every country were here today, excited to watch the final round of the exams, and more importantly, see where the balance of power had shifted.

"The contest continues until one side admits defeat. However, should I judge that continuation is impossible, the match will stop there. You both understand?"

The half-asleep face before him listened silently to the announcement of the high-handed supervising examiner. He had yawned any number of times now, to the point where Itachi wondered if he might actually fall asleep on the spot.

The boy's name was Nemui, which meant "sleepy." Apparently, he was a ninja from the Village Hidden in the Clouds.

"Maybe we should have them push our turn back, so you can get a proper sleep?" Itachi asked gently, concern for his opponent rising in his chest.

Nemui, a boy around thirteen years old, blinked at Itachi, his eyelids hanging halfway over his round brown eyes, exhaustion playing at the corners of his mouth. "No need to worry," he said with a sleepy smile, brushing his dark bangs back.

A curving wall swept in and around the circular grounds, while the ceiling was rounded and open. The ground was covered in dirt, a few trees growing here and there. Scaffolding stretched out horizontally, protruding from the top of the wall, where a large number of spectators watched the matches on which the futures of the genin depended. Daimyo and people from the ruling classes in all the lands, officials from each allied nation of the ninja world, chunin, jounin. Among them were even the faces of those who ran the black markets, having snuck in to gamble on the outcomes of matches or gather intel to sell to enemy lands.

Which village would stand with the responsibility for the future of the shinobi world on its shoulders? Each match was sure to be exciting, especially as Konoha boasted four Uchiha genin in the finals, as well as the rumor that they had a Gensogan user, the likes of which hadn't been seen for generations. And so, as Itachi's battle queued up, everyone held their breath.

This place, where capable genin from every village risked their lives, was a battlefield just as important as those fought on a global scale. Not infrequently, the fights here were directly connected with the power structures among the villages several years later.

Which was exactly why Itachi had to show off his power.

' _Konohagakure has Itachi Uchiha and Tsukiko Amaya…'_

He and Tsukiko had to demonstrate such overwhelming strength that the adults gathered there wouldn't so much as think of laying a hand on Konoha. This was the first step to a world without fighting.

He had absolutely no intention of going easy on anyone, despite his reluctance to hurt another ninja. He had to give this everything he had, to break his opponent quickly, before someone got seriously wounded.

"Third Exam, second round, match one," the jounin announced, his hand raised. "Konohagakure ninja Itachi Uchiha against Kumogakure ninja Nemui Shunmino. Start!"

"Haaaah." Nemui opened his mouth in a great yawn as the start signal was given. There was a smattering if whispered laughter in the crowd.

"Go Itachi!" Tsukiko shouted excitedly, practically leaning over the railing where the other fighters were stationed. "You can do it!"

A light dusting of pink across his cheeks at the loud praise, Itachi got into position. He leaned forward slightly and braced his feet. He had no weapons in either hand, and relaxed his entire body, setting his awareness adrift so as to not focus on any one particular spot. No matter what his opponent did, he was ready to react.

"I'm so sleepy." Nemui stood up straight, arms dangling at his sides, looking as though he was not in any kind of ready position, and then started to wobble from side to side.

"Maybe you should just go to sleep." Before Itachi's response had even reached his ears, Nemui's eyes were closed. His stiff body pitched forward, like a stick falling to the earth.

Immediately before he slammed into the ground, the older boy vanished from Itachi's field of view. The younger boy took a sharp breath of surprise. He hadn't felt a hint of movement in Nemui. His action was too sudden. From his awkward pose, he hadn't seemed to be shifting his weight from side to side.

Itachi had been too slow to anticipate his opponent's movement. In that momentary opening, Nemui had taken the upper hand.

He heard a snore from behind, the back of his neck prickling.

' _Thunder…'_

Itachi immediately tumbled forward in a basic somersault, and the right arm belonging to the sleeping Nemui grazed the front of his face. The extended appendage pushed past him with incredible force, white electricity turning into countless bolts of lightning, enveloping his arm.

' _So that is the true form of lightning,'_ Itachi admired absently as he landed, getting some distance from his opponent.

As before, Nemui remained asleep.

Standing up.

Was it an act? Or was he really sleeping? The only way to find out was to attack him directly.

Itachi pulled a kunai from his breast pocket and threw it. The blade flew in a straight line toward the face of the sleeping Nemui.

His body, rocking from side to side, shook violently, and just barely evaded the kunai.

Was he awake, then?

At any rate, the older boy's eyes were closed, so Itachi couldn't use the Sharingan.

Nemui stood upright, still sleeping, as though the attack of the previous moment hadn't happened. Just when Itachi noticed him swaying violently once more, Nemui disappeared from his field of view again.

Faster than the eye could follow, Itachi danced up into the sky.

Nemui's lightning covered arm swept through the spot where the Leaf genin had been standing.

Itachi landed near the wall to put some space between them, and caught his enemy in his sight. His thoughts were racing at a dizzying speed, trying somehow to analyze the phenomenon happening before his eyes.

He couldn't use the Sharingan, as it would be a waste of a massive amount of chakra. In the formula for an overwhelming victory, the Sharingan was essential, so he needed to keep it aside until an opportunity presented himself.

But he was confident he could unravel the phenomenon before him, using the decade of experience he had already. He didn't need to rely on the power of the Sharingan.

' _Think…'_ His eyes traveled up to where Tsukiko was watching him with wide eyes. She wasn't cheering, likely afraid of breaking his concentration, but was smiling at him, her aura exuding confidence. She believed in him utterly.

And he wouldn't let her down.

Itachi switched his attention back to Nemui, wobbling off in the distance. He had to assume that his enemy was using a type of technique that brought out the full potential of his physical abilities through the selfless state of mind that was sleep. By sleeping, , he kept the ego in check, and could pull off specialized moves through pure instinct and animal intuition alone.

He'd been surprised by his opponent's tactics, so Itachi had lost sight of the fact that this was a fight based on physical abilities. If he simply concentrated on his own abilities, he could easily stand in the same arena as this boy. He focused all his attention of the enemy before his eyes.

Only a few seconds had passed since he'd landed, but it was enough.

Wobbly Nemui twitched. He was coming.

Vision, hearing, scent, all his senses attuned. Itachi tracked Nemui with everything he had. He felt his chakra tracing the wall to his right.

Lightning.

He dodged.

' _I'm faster…'_

So, Itachi was physically superior after all. Once he knew that, it was possible to deal with this. With flowing movements, he evaded the attacks launched from Nemui's selfless dream state.

He had a flash of insight: Why did his enemy specialize in a technique that relies on sleeping?

Imagining what his enemy thought about while he was asleep, Itachi began to piece together a theory. If he was sealing away himself to increase his physical power, then there was a real possibility that he had no memory of the event. If that were true, then Nemui didn't remember the self who fought.

' _If I can wake him up, I can win…'_

Why would Nemui need a technique like that?

Because he was a coward. He was totally terrified of hurting someone, of being hurt. So he escaped into sleep. And if Nemui was a coward, then he would be afraid of the endless sleep, the one no one woke up from.

Pity and anger clashed in Itachi's mind. Pity for the ninja, so like himself, who didn't want to hurt anybody. And anger for choosing the easy way out. A technique like that wasn't sustainable. Not for a true shinobi. Nemui would never be able to gather intel, to report on his fight and the things he learned. In other words, he wasn't a ninja. You have to open your eyes wide in order to carefully assess a situation.

That moment would clench his victory.

The back and forth of Nemui attacking and Itachi dodging gracefully lasted about ten minutes. Just when people in the arena were starting to fuss about the lack of any real developments, it happened.

Nemui, unable to keep sleeping and fighting for long, stopped abruptly, shook faintly, and lifted his closed eyelids the tiniest bit. Their eyes met.

This was the moment Itachi had been waiting for. He poured his chakra into his eyes.

Sharingan. It took less than a hundredth of a second to activate. Itachi was betting on that moment. He hammered into Nemui's mind the detailed image he had created while dodging attacks.

"Ahh!" Nemui screamed. Awake for a mere instant, he fell asleep once more.

' _I did it.'_

He slipped around from the rear, and slit Nemui's throat with his kunai.

This image, imagined so faithfully in spite of his discomfort with the idea, became reality, replaying in his enemy's mind with extreme detail. Nemui died, his throat slashed. But he was aware that he was still alive, and he opened his eyes again to verify before falling asleep. And yet, he couldn't sleep soundly anymore.

Itachi continued to dodge Nemui's attacks for another few minutes until his opponent's eyelids fluttered once more. In an instant, his field of view was dyed red.

This time, the image was of Itachi gouging into his stomach.

Repeat.

Each time he was killed, Nemui's sleep grew lighter. Stabbed, strangled, beaten, poisoned; Itachi killed the older boy any and every way possible.

Finally, Nemui couldn't sleep at all. If he closed his eyes, Itachi would kill him. After being subjected to brutal deaths over and over, he was now completely ruled by his fear of the final sleep.

"Hah...hah...hah…" Chest heaving, almost hyperventilating, Nemui trembled and shook.

The spectators had no idea what was happening. At best, only a few people had realized that Itachi was using the Sharingan.

The younger boy continued to evade attacks with ease, while Nemui's movements gradually grew sluggish. Sweat streamed down Nemui's face, and he started to cry, his eyes wide and unseeing.

Itachi hadn't once laid a physical attack on him, or even touched him.

"H-Help me," Nemui groaned, falling to his knees as tears streamed down his face. "I-I don't want to die anymore! Please, help me….Please."

"This match is over!" The proctor stepped in between the two boys. "The winner is Itachi Uchiha."

The arena fell silent. Everyone seemed to be confused by the incomprehensible situation.

Nemui wailed and wept, half-mad, right up to the moment he was carried away in a stretcher by the medical ninja. "I don't want to die!" He screamed over and over, the terror in his voice reaching into every nook and cranny of the arena, sending shivers up spines.

He would probably give up on being a ninja. That was the level of fear Itachi had put into him.

Ninja were the main cause of fighting in this world. One fewer ninja meant that much less fighting. Itachi hadn't been wrong to break Nemui's spirit so utterly and horribly.

' _So why do I feel like a monster?'_

All around him, people were silent, most of them in awe of the small boy. Itachi had, all by himself, produced an aura of death that wafted through the entire arena. He had demonstrated an incomprehensible power, and shinobi from all over the world now knew his unfathomable strength.

' _We mustn't make an enemy of this boy.'_

The more people who thought that, the less likely that Konoha would get dragged into conflict.

Using the Sharingan to cast Genjutsu was an effective means of making others see visions. But if he used this trick in the right way, he could pull others into the illusion, making an audience as large as this one see the strength hidden in his small limbs.

' _I'm sorry,'_ he thought, silently willing an apology after Nemui, who'd been sacrificed for his lofty goals. Itachi was grateful from the bottom of his heart to the Konoha officials who permitted him to take part in the Chunin Exams, but in his chest was a deep ache, the regret for so destroying another person.

"Itachi!"

All he saw was a flash of white, and then Tsukiko was hugging him tightly, concern evident in her eyes. "Are you alright?"

She clearly didn't mean physically, as he hadn't been touched. At most, his clothes were dusty. But, as usual, she'd seen through him, somehow able to know when his heart cried out against his actions, like she could hear it.

His neutral expression softened, and he smiled gently at her. "I'm fine. Thank you." He poked her forehead before taking her hand, turning his back on the empty arena.

Tsukiko's eyes widened, and her cheeks darkened as her hand shot up to her forehead. "O-Okay," She stuttered, moving along with him. "You're, um, you're welcome."

' _Cute,'_ he thought, smiling again. Then he heard it.

Behind him, in the silence of the arena, someone was clapping. Turning his head, expressionless, he looked for the source of the sound.

A face covered on the right side with bandages.

"Danzo Shimura," Itachi murmured, not attaching any honorific or respectful tone to the name as he should have.

Tsukiko's grip tightened, her face falling expressionless as well.

A dark, twisted smile stretched out on Danzo's lips as he looked down at the two children.

* * *

NOW:

"Let's take a break, Chiyo!" Masuko called out, cracking her neck. "You need to rest before trying that again."

The two kunoichi were in the same clearing as yesterday, destroyed trees and huge craters in the ground marking their progress.

It was a hot day, the sun beating down on the two kunoichi, and their training had been intense, to say the least.

Chiyo nodded wearily, the little remnants of her amor fading away. It was finally taking shape, becoming more than the shell it had been during the preliminary matches. She plopped down on the ground, laying on her back. "I...think..I'm..getting somewhere," she managed, smiling up at the sky.

"No doubt of that," Masuko grinned, standing over her. "But we need to get your speed up to par before you can even think about landing any blows on Midori."

"Or Gaara," Chiyo agreed, closing her eyes with a quiet sigh.

Masuko paused, her questions bouncing around in her skull. ' _To hell with it. I've never been one for subtlety.'_

She sat down next to the dozing genin. "What's going on with you and that Sand boy anyway?" She asked casually. "He do something to piss you off?"

' _Because if he threatened you or Midori in any way, that genin'll have a lot more to deal with than some stupid Exam,'_ she mentally added.

Chiyo opened her eyes, frowning. "Nothing like that...it's just…"

"Just what?" Now Masuko was confused.

The younger girl sat up, facing her teacher with a look of resignation. "People like that, who've never lost a fight, or have never even been hurt...they're going to get a lot of enemies, people who think they're monsters, or evil." She lowered her head, her voice trembling slightly. "And one day, they're going to lose. No one is undefeated forever. And when that happens, they need to be told that it's alright, that they don't need to always win every fight. They need someone to take the time to understand them, to comfort them. Otherwise…" she trailed off.

"Chiyo." Masuko's voice was calm, but with a sharp edge to it. "What happened?"

The young genin hesitated, lifting her head to see the concerned look on her sensei's face.

Masuko's jaw clenched at the unshed tears visible in her student's eyes. "I'm not going to do anything you don't want me to," she said gently. "But Tsukiko and I need to know if something is wrong at home."

As she had so many times before, Chiyo shook her head, smiling weakly. "No, my parents are great. Sure, they put a lot of pressure on me, but it's fine. You and Tsukiko-Sensei are getting the wrong idea. I'm not talking about me…"

"Then who?"

"Reiji Mitsuru, my cousin." There was a sorrowful quality to her voice, and she lowered her head again, pulling at pieces of grass. "He, um...well, my aunt and uncle really pressured him, a lot more than my parents have ever done to me. He was a few years older than me, and we played together a lot.

"Reiji was a really good ninja, far better than anyone in his age. He never lost a fight, and always completed his missions perfectly. He became a chunin when he was a year younger than the norm, and he was gaining a lot of respect."

She stopped, struggling with something.

Masuko tried to intervene. "Chiyo, you don't have to—"

"I do!" She said sharply, ripping up a section of the ground. "I can't hang onto this guilt anymore! It hurts too much…" Her breath came out in short puffs, and she straightened determinedly.

"But a couple years ago, when I was still in school, he had a really important mission that went wrong. His group was ambushed, and though the enemy didn't steal the documents he was guarding, the rest of his team was killed.

"When he got home, my aunt and uncle started shouting at him, saying he'd dishonored our family, and that this was a disgrace that would blemish our line for years. I was…" Chiyo's hands clenched at the fabric of her pants. "I was watching from around the corner. I shouldn't have been there. My parents were trying to calm my aunt and uncle down, and didn't know where I was. Only Reiji saw me.

"Later, that night, after everything calmed down, he told me he loved me. That no matter what.." Her voice broke, and she was quiet for a long moment, her shoulders shaking. "That no matter what, he was proud of me. That's the last time I saw him."

"Oh, Chiyo…" Masuko sighed heavily, her heart like lead. Stories like this were becoming all too common in this hate-filled world of theirs.

"My aunt and uncle covered up his death, said it was a training accident. They didn't want the Mitsuru clan to be damaged any further by rumors of suicide. My mom and dad haven't talked to them since then." Chiyo cleared her throat, wiping her eyes with the bottom of her shirt. "Anyway, that's why I need to beat Gaara. He reminds me too much of Reiji, and I can't ever let something like that happen again if I can stop it. His own teammates are terrified of him, and forget losing a battle, he's never even been hurt before! If something happens that pushes him too far.."

"I get it," Masuko said, graciously looking away while the younger girl gathered herself. "You want to be the one to beat Gaara, so you can tell him what you never told Reiji."

Chiyo nodded, standing up. "It's completely selfish, but yes. I need to let him know that he's not a monster, that it's okay if he doesn't always win. If I can save one person...I feel like I can finally let go of my guilt."

The older woman watched her student for a long moment, sensing that there was something missing, something that Chiyo hadn't mentioned. Still, she'd finally learned the truth about the young genin's family, and that was a start.

"Well then, we'd better be getting back to training." Masuko clapped briskly, changing the subject. "With the speed you have now, you'll be lucky if you can outrun a turtle." The older woman knew from personal experience that what Chiyo needed most Now was to know that nothing had changed, that Masuko didn't see her any differently than before. She was still her student.

The dark-haired girl smiled gratefully, sinking into a crouch. "Then I'd better get to it."

"Confident, aren't we?" Masuko mimicked her pose, brushing her purple hair out of her eyes. "Let's get to work."

' _I'll make sure you never feel that hopeless ever again. That's my promise, from teacher to student.'_

* * *

THEN:

Tsukiko smiled calmly, her face betraying none of her nervous energy as she met the flat black eyes of her opponent.

"Match four of the Third Exam: Konohagakure genin Tsukiko Amaya versus Konohagakure genin Hiroto Uchiha."

The crowd stirred, anticipation palpable. Here was the match they'd been waiting for. An Uchiha against the rumored Gensogan user. Indeed, all eyes were locked on the genin, one tall, one small.

Hiroto was about four years older than her, the stern expressionless look of the older Uchiha males already rubbing off on him. His hair was short and spiky, and he stood over a foot taller than her. It was only because of this, and his position of looking down on her, that she saw the faint trace of smugness in his eyes.

The younger girl took a deep breath, trying to steady her nerves. Although an Uchiha had been her preferred opponent on paper, now, facing him, she wasn't so sure. There were several Uchihas in the crowd, including Lord Fugaku, as the head of the clan and a representative. The others were acting as the Police Force, keeping everything in order. Still, she could feel eyes trained on her, and was faced with the realization that, other than Lord Fugaku, none of her adopted clan was on her side.

"So you've noticed." Hiroto's lips stretched into a mocking smile. "Quite the situation you have here. Either lose and shame Lord Fugaku and his son, or somehow miraculously win and the clan will hate you even more for upstaging one of their own."

Tsukiko's smile faded slightly, and she glanced back to where Itachi was watching her. She'd been so worried about him earlier that she hadn't really had time to think this through. She and Itachi had trained to fight another team in the first round, but they'd forfeited, and she hadn't really worried too much about fighting her next opponent. She had a strategy in place, and was confident in her win, but…

"Begin!"

' _No time to think now,'_ Tsukiko thought, settling into a defensive crouch. She let her mind go blank, completely focused on the fight at-hand. Once she had an advantage, then she'd think more on whether she should win or lose. Her eyes watched her opponent carefully, focusing on his neck or lower, just in case he decided to use his Sharingan early.

' _One one-hundredth of a second,'_ she reminded herself, making sure her body was relaxed. ' _That's how fast he can trap me.'_

To his credit, Hiroto looked completely unconcerned, not looking like he was about to attack, or even defend should she fly at him. He was openly inviting her to attack.

An obvious trap.

After a few seconds, he shrugged, sighing. "Alright, I guess I'll—"

His hand flicked forward abruptly, the glint of a knife giving away his intent.

Tsukiko jumped, bending backwards to avoid the kunai, while also twisting her body to dodge the one aimed at her feet.

"Firestyle: Fireball Jutsu!"

So, Hiroto was hoping for a quick victory, to burn her before she could regain her footing. But it was a mistake.

Grinning, Tsukiko's eyes turned red, and she held out her hands, easily wresting control of the flames as she landed. They weren't as hot or hard to control as Itachi's or Shisui's. Easy.

The crowd gasped as the fire, aimed directly at the girl mid-air, met her hands and was pulled apart, turning into two fiery whips.

' _Time to go on the offensive.'_ The fire twisted around her arms in a firm grip, and willed it to burn hotter.

Scanning the arena, her intuition flared as her eyes found her opponent, standing casually as if he'd expected her to dodge.

' _Don't look at his face.'_

Hiroto may have wasted chakra by giving her fire, but he would've known about her abilities, at least to the extent that he could figure out that the fire wouldn't hurt her. It was a distraction, so that she'd be caught in the real trap.

The Sharingan.

She swung one of the whips at him, watching his feet and body language. But instead of dodging or countering, he shot straight at her, intent on catching her eye, even if he was burned.

Left with no choice, Tsukiko put out the fire and flipped backwards, her eyes turning green. As soon as her hands touched the earth, she used her momentum to wrench a wall out of the ground, landing with her back pressed against it.

Hiroto leapt up over the obstacle, twisting to see her. He threw a few kunai in an attempt to get her to look up at him.

The kunai slammed into Tsukiko's body, stabbing her through the chest and neck. Blood spurted out, staining the wall as she slid down it.

Crows burst out of the shadow clone, but were evaded easily by Hiroto, who tracked their movements with his Sharingan. It did however, provide enough distraction for her to think.

Inside the wall of earth, Tsukiko waited, catching her breath. The older Uchiha was stronger than she'd initially thought, and his opening words to her had caught her off-guard. But, his Sharingan wasn't perfected yet. He couldn't see through her clone or pinpoint her location, as Itachi would've. And that meant she could win.

' _The clan might hate me even more, but there's a chance that they'll acknowledge my strength. I am, after all, one of them.'_ She closed her eyes, breathing in the smell of dirt.

But that thought was a little more forced than it usually was. Lately, with Itachi going to secret meetings, and the growing hostility around her, it seemed like she was becoming more and more of an outsider every day.

' _It doesn't matter, so long as Itachi realizes his dream.'_

A dream that would start here, with the defeat of this Uchiha. He seemed determined to catch her in his Genjutsu, which could have disastrous results as far as trying not to be hated went. If this didn't let up soon, she'd be forced to use her trump card.

' _I need to try and end this before then.'_

Her mind made up, she took one last deep breath.

In one explosive movement, Tsukiko burst out of the rock, her eyes switched back to red, and she kicked several small fireballs at the unsuspecting boy's back.

At the last second, he leapt upward, his eyes having finally tracked her chakra.

For the next few minutes, this pattern repeated. Tsukiko would attack, sending fire or kunai enhanced with wind at Hiroto, and he would dodge and try to catch her in his sight.

It was obvious he was trying to wear her out, but Tsukiko didn't have much choice. She needed to keep him at a distance, and keep him moving so he wouldn't trap her in Genjutsu.

"I'm disappointed," he taunted, landing a few feet away from her. "I thought your kekkei genkai would at least match the Byakugan in terms of a challenge. But all you can do is throw rocks and fire, which a jounin can do several times better than you. Honestly, what good are you if you can't put up a half-decent fight?"

Tsukiko didn't rise to the bait, keeping her gaze low. He would likely go on the offensive now, trying to get in close. That was fine, she just had to disable him before then. He was using far more chakra then her, after all.

"I'll admit that Itachi was impressive in his fight," Hiroto continued, his keen eyes reading the sudden stiffness in Tsukiko's form. "But he'd do better if we wasn't dragged down by you, who can't even use Ninjutsu." He gritted his teeth, getting angrier as he went on. "Everyone knows you were given to the Uchihas as a way to keep us quiet, spouting off lies about how powerful you would be. But if all you're going to do is ride Itachi's coattails, you might as well—"

"Do you really want to see what I'm capable of?" Tsukiko asked quietly, raising dark eyes to the angry Uchiha. "You, who've never fought in a real life-and-death battle, you, who, despite being older, hasn't even mastered his Sharingan yet?" Her voice was calm, but it was the calm before a storm, her eyes piercing through the older male.

Hiroto paused for a moment, taken aback. But then the fool realized that Tsukiko was making direct eye contact with him, and his smug smile returned. "I guess we'll never see," he said, his eyes glowing. "Now that you've been caught by my Sharingan."

And the image that he'd wanted her to see, her demise, became reality.

The Hiroto in front of her vanished, and then she felt his hand on her shoulder, a kunai at her throat. It was an impressive illusion, Tsukiko had to admit. She could feel the warmth and sweat of his hand, the sharpness of the knife. And she could hear his gloating voice in her ear, about to slit her throat.

"Pitiful. There really is nothing special about you after all."

Tsukiko smiled, glancing over her shoulder. "You haven't seen anything yet." Then her eyes turned gold.

Instantly, the illusion was broken, and Hiroto was in front of her again, his eyes wide with alarm. "How-How did you—"

"Chapter two, paragraph four of _Basic Genjutsu for all Shinobi_ ," Tsukiko recited, crossing her arms. "'A ninja must be able to disrupt their chakra to release themselves from a Genjutsu.' It's pretty basic stuff."

"But you can't just do that with the Sharingan!"

The white-haired girl nodded. "True. But say you had four different chakras, just ready to be switched around. It makes pretty much all Genjutsu useless, don't you think?"

' _And now it's time to end this.'_ Tsukiko had been drawing him out this whole time. It takes a lot of chakra to use the Sharingan, and Hiroto has been especially reckless, too caught up in humiliating her to realize that he was nearing his limit. He didn't have enough energy to move faster than her.

Tsukiko smiled, taking one last look at the freaked-out boy, before using the Body Flicker technique, Shisui's specialty, to get behind him. "And just for the record," she hissed from behind, jumping up to slam the butt of her kunai into his temple. "I am _not_ worthless. I'm an _Uchiha._ "

Hiroto's eyes rolled back, and he, like so many Uchihas in years past, realized just how dangerous someone from the Amaya clan really was.

* * *

"That was reckless," Itachi stated simply, looking past her to glare at the unconscious Hiroto as he was carried off the arena floor.

Tsukiko turned pink. "I know, but it was a good way to show the other lands how strong I am. If the Leaf has both the Uchiha, who are so strong in Genjutsu, as well as someone who's all but immune to it, then it's far less likely we'll be attacked."

"Hmm," Itachi said, not at all happy. True, it had been thrilling to watch Tsukiko fight, especially against someone of his own clan, knowing that it was because of him and Shisui that she could counter the Sharingan so well.

But then she'd revealed the truth about her eyes, a secret she herself hadn't know until the first time Itachi had placed her in a Genjutsu. Not that it was a bad thing, but it would soon spread that the one best equipped to fight against the Sharingan was living with the Uchiha clan, and one of two things would happen. Option one, she'd finally be acknowledged and be brought into the inner fold of the clan in an attempt to keep her loyal to them. Or two, she'd be even more isolated, and the clan members would be even more convinced that she'd been placed with them as a spy. And knowing the vengeful nature of his family, it wasn't hard to guess which would happen.

And so, the instant the proctor had declared their match over, Itachi had all but dragged Tsukiko out out of the ring, latching onto her hand tightly. He could feel the angry glares of his clansmen, and the dark, greedy gaze of Danzo Shimura, looming over the area like hateful shadows.

"But hey," Tsukiko said brightly. "We get to move on to the next round!"

He looked up from scanning the crowd, unable to stop an answering smile from appearing on his face. "Yes. One more round each and we'll be fighting each other."

"It would be fitting, don't you think?" She teased. "For me to take first in everything?"

He quirked an eyebrow, poking her forehead. "You still lose to me more often than not in our training matches, remember?"

Tsukiko pouted, crossing her arms. "I'm getting better! Besides, the more you rely on that Sharingan of yours, the more of an advantage I'll have. Really, it's a good thing we're on the same team!"

Itachi frowned slightly. Her last sentence, while being just as cocky as she usually was, was more like a question. He looked closer, and saw that something wasn't quite right. It looked more like she was hugging herself than crossing her arms, and her eyes were more bright than usual, almost like she was trying to hold back tears.

"Tsukiko…" he said slowly, frowning with concern. "You know that no matter what happens, we'll always be a team." There was no hesitation in his voice, nothing but confidence.

Her smile faltered slightly. "Of course, right."

"No," he said, placing his hands on her shoulders to make her look at him. "You don't seem to understand. Out of everyone in the whole village, even Shisui, I wouldn't want to work with anyone else. You're the one I can rely on the most...and…" he trailed off, his face red. "You're the one I care about the most."

Tsukiko's eyes widened, and a warm feeling erupted in her chest. Her mind raced ahead, but was frozen at the same time, taking in little details about the boy in front of her.

' _He's gotten taller than me...his hair is long now...he smiles more often…'_ All the things she hadn't really noticed before suddenly caught her attention, and she felt her face get hot.

"Th-Thank you," she stuttered slightly, unable to meet his gaze. "You always seem to know what I need to hear."

He opened his mouth to say something else, but snapped it shut when one of the proctors from the Second exam entered the waiting room. He removed his hands from Tsukiko's shoulders, oddly embarrassed and feeling like he'd been caught.

"The results for the Exams are in," the proctor said, smiling knowingly at the two children. "And I'm here to inform you that the Hokage has made a decision regarding the next matches."

* * *

A.N. Whew! That one was fun to write! I got so excited when I realized Tsukiko could fight an Uchiha, and I spent like an hour just planning how that fight should go!

What do you guys think about Chiyo? My sister and I thought out her backstory together, but after I'd written it, she turned to me and yelled "You bastard! How could you hurt the baby?!" So...yeah…

Several important bits in this chapter, definitely laying the groundwork for when I get to go off-script, as it were, but I won't say too much about that.

Anyway, please let me know what you all thought!


	18. Chapter 16

A.N. So, this may come as a surprise, but I'm not dead! Yay!

Really, though, these last few weeks have been awful. I have a crazy amount of schoolwork, a close relative had a heart attack (he's okay, don't worry), I got rear-ended on my way to my university (I'm okay), and all these storms have killed my internet for over a week. So, I apologize that I haven't posted anything in a month, but thank you all for being so incredibly patient.

And, more importantly, thanks for 300 hearts! In honor of crossing that milestone (as well as apologize for the hiatus), I'm giving you all a SUPER long chapter.

Fair warning: I skipped most of the fights. It really wouldn't have been interesting to read about Tsukiko watching them. It had a point in the preliminaries, but not really here.

Please enjoy! And please review!

* * *

THEN:

"My son has been promoted to chunin," Fugaku noted dispassionately, before his assembled brethren. Beside him, Itachi stood in a Konoha jacket.

As always, the Nakano Shrine was dark and filled with a miasma of hatred. But this time, it was tinged with a certain desperation, all eyes locked on Itachi and his father with a grim excitement.

"Congratulations." It was his father's trusted aide, Yashiro, who spoke. His normally narrowed eyes narrowed even further as he smiled. The rest of his clan quickly followed suit, shouting out their congratulations in unison.

"Say a few words," his father urged, gesturing to the crowd.

"Very well," Itachi replied, in a voice devoid of the bitter emotion rolling in his chest. He bowed deeply. "I am prepared to continue to devote myself body and soul to the path of the ninja, for the sake of Konoha, and for the sake of the clan. I look forward to walking it alongside you all." Itachi's short speech was far more grown-up than his age, now ten, would seem to allow.

In the First Exam, he and Tsukiko had tied scores, second only to the record holder, the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze. She had practically bounced through the roof with excitement after hearing that, and the way she grinned at him gave Itachi the feeling that she had figured out his secret, a wish he'd never dared to say aloud for fear that it would shatter the moment he gave it life.

As to the Second Exam, they received the shortest time ever on record, even though they were young, and not in the usual three-person cell. In the Third Exam, the team they were to fight in the first round defaulted, giving them the win, while their individual performances in the second bouts led officials to decide there was no need for them to take part in a third match. It wouldn't do to let the leaders of the other lands see too much of their superior strength, leaving their limits a mystery. And so, the Chunin Exams had ended, with the two children informed the very next day that they were to pick up their vests.

As the whole village had seen, both children were blessed with terrifying talent, sharpened against the other. Occasionally, Fugaku almost forgot that Itachi was his son, and felt jealous of the genius he possessed. But now, in times like these, all he felt was pride.

Still, the moment was tainted by the stiffness in Itachi's shoulders, and the hard set of his mouth. He hid it well, but Fugaku knew his son better than he thought. The boy was furious.

And rightly so.

While Itachi had been lavished with attention and praise, and had been acknowledged before the clan as a chunin, Tsukiko had been pushed to the side, far harshly than before.

Her exhibition of power, with the ability to break the Sharingan's hold as it it were a mere D-class jutsu instead of the infamous kekkei genkai of the Uchiha clan, was threatening at best, a potentially fatal problem at worst.

It was not in the Uchiha nature to leave an enemy so powerful alive, and to have someone capable of defeating them amidst their ranks was very difficult for some of the older members to handle. Those who had breathed and lived war for so long tended to see it everywhere, and the instincts of the Uchiha was what kept them alive and on top all these years. Their only flaw was their reliance on the Sharingan, and that was useless against Tsukiko. Add her ability to tame and control any fire thrown at her, and her sharp, strategic mind, and the whole clan was jittery, afraid and resentful that a mere ten-year-old could best them.

In response to this fear, Tsukiko had become a social pariah, completely ignored by the clan as if without attention, she would simply disappear.

It was hurting her, immensely, Fugaku knew, but he and Mikoto were at a loss for what to do. He couldn't and _wouldn't_ use his power as the head of the clan to force his brethren to accept her, and nothing he had to say could help her. Mikoto had been more equipped than he, telling her that no matter what, she was proud of the girl. That had helped for a time, until Mikoto suggested that Tsukiko move into the guest room of the house, redesigning it as her own room and study area.

It had been a good idea, especially as she and Itachi were both getting older. She was ten now, and fixing up a bedroom to her liking would distract her from other problems. And, since Sasuke was going through a growth-spurt, it meant more room for both of the boys.

Unfortunately, it had backfired almost immediately. Instead of the excitement Mikoto had been hoping for, Tsukiko's expression had been horrified. She was quick to get her emotions in-check, but her polite smile trembled behind panicked eyes.

Fugaku realized the blunder as soon as Mikoto told him about her reaction. Instead of seeing this as a reward, Tsukiko thought she was being punished, sequestered away as a disgrace even in her own home.

Still, she accepted, and the young girl and Mikoto spent several days decorating and setting up the new bedroom. Tsukiko had been distant in that time, more withdrawn and quiet than she'd been in several years. They hadn't seen her like that since she first came to live with them.

And she wasn't the only one acting different. Itachi had been markedly cold to his parents and short with his fellow clan members, outright refusing to go celebrate his promotion. And Sasuke had actually thrown a tantrum, shouting how he didn't want Tsukiko to move out of their room. It had taken both siblings to calm him down, leaving a furious and bewildered Mikoto demanding that Fugaku do _something_ about all this.

The older man agreed, disappointed with the behavior of his clan. He'd heard Tsukiko's barely suppressed sobs from her room, the telltale sliding of the door when she snuck outside at night, Itachi and sometimes even Sasuke following her. He knew, and he was angry.

Threat or not, Tsukiko was his daughter. She had lived in his house for more than half of her life, and had found her place in his family. Amaya or Uchiha, it didn't matter. If nothing else, Fugaku Uchiha was fiercely loyal to his loved ones, and though he couldn't outright order his clan to accept her, he would punish anyone who harmed her with all the severity he could manage.

"If a ninja of Itachi's caliber joined the Military Police Force, it might improve the standing of the Uchihas within the village," the long-haired Inabi said joyfully.

Looking down on the younger male, Fugaku gave voice to his own thoughts, his tone far more clipped than he'd perhaps intended. "I have no intention of letting Itachi into the Police Force."

At once, a stir rose up in the room. But Itachi simply stared silently into space, giving no outward sign of surprise.

Had his son understood? A feeling of doubt welled up in Fugaku, but he couldn't exactly question the boy here in front of everyone. Changing gears, he spoke in a firm, even tone. "I would like to have my son and daughter go into the Anbu."

"The...Anbu?" Yashiro spat out, a note of animosity in his voice.

His outburst distracted from Itachi, who finally broke and swiveled his head around to look at his father. He'd never once referred to Tsukiko as his daughter aloud, and now he'd done so in front of the entire clan.

Fugaku nodded silently.

"Our Military Police Force and the Anbu have clashed any number of times in pursuit of public order in Konoha—" Yashiro began to reproach him.

"I know that better than anyone," he snapped.

To maintain the peace in Konohagakure, the Konoha Military Police Force has been established with the Uchiha clan as its center. Even now, with Fugaku as the chief, the Force worked day and night policing the village.

However, there was another organization that maintained the peace: the Anbu.

Under the direct control of the Hokage, the Anbu was a unit composed of capable ninja, and almost always made an appearance on important missions inside, and in the vicinity of, Konoha. Major crimes committed were taken out of the hands of the Police Force, and entrusted to the Anbu.

There was no clear line between what was the jurisdiction of the Force, and what was the subject for investigation by the Anbu. At the discretion of the Hokage, the nature of the investigation would simply shift from one to the other. This led the Military Police and the Anbu to clash every so often. And each time they did, it was Fugaku's job to negotiate with the Hokage and the Anbu. He knew better than anyone the friction between the two peacekeeping forces.

The main building of the Nakano Shrine erupted into discussion. Some criticized the Anbu, others tried to guess at Fugaku's true intentions, and still others noted the way to which their clan head had referred to Tsukiko. The different resentments they each held in their hearts exploded into the closed space of the shrine, all at once.

"Listen to me!" Fugaku roared.

The shrine fell silent, filled with an undirected bloodlust.

"I understand how you all feel." Fugaku began speaking slowly, choosing his words carefully. "I feel the same way. Which is exactly why Itachi and Tsukiko will join the Anbu. I intend to have my son and daughter work as a conduit between the village and the clan."

Everyone present held their breath.

"As you all know, members of the Anbu Foundation are secretly watching over our compound. In which case, we will also bring watchful eyes to the village."

"And you're saying that's Itachi?"

Fugaku nodded at Yashiro's direction. "And Tsukiko."

He grimaced. "With all due respect, handing the girl over to Danzo will be like begging her to betray us."

"Tsukiko is not a traitor," Fugaku refuted firmly, his eyes cautioning anyone who spoke next. "I will not have my daughter spoken about like that. She has wanted nothing more than to be a part of this clan for several years now. If given the chance, I'm sure she'll prove as loyal as any of you."

"But you can't deny that there's risk in putting her in Danzo's power," Yashiro insisted, mouth curling with dislike.

"Consider it a test," Fugaku countered. "Let us give her false information. If the Anbu acts on it, we know she is working for Danzo. If not, then she is loyal. Either way, my mind is made up. She is joining the organization."

"But we are all comrades of the same village," he heard a murmured voice say—and it seemed he was not the only one to hear it. Hitting in a moment of silence, the voice had reached the ears of everyone in the building.

Its owner stood beside him. Itachi was silent now, head hanging as if to avoid their eyes, a mixed look of sadness and frustration on his face.

"What did you just say?" Yashiro asked, slowly, dangerously.

Eyes still turned to the ground, Itachi started speaking without seeming to direct his words at any one person. "The Senju clan and the people of Konoha are still our village comrades. And Tsukiko's as much an Uchiha as any of us...We should stop creating this distance and doing things to fan the flames of rivalry."

The bloodlust blanketing the room grew thicker.

Itachi appeared to notice this too, but regardless, he continued to speak. "One side does one thing, the other does it too. You kill your opponent, someone comes for revenge. And then a fight breaks out."

"Are you siding with Konoha?"

"You're looking at things from the perspective of who is your ally, so you can't see the big picture."

"You—" An enraged Yashiro leapt to his feet, reaching as if to grab hold of Itachi's collar.

Fugaku stopped the hand of his trusted aide.

"Chief!" Yashiro shouted, anger bleeding into his voice.

"Calm yourself."

"But!"

"It's fine. Calm yourself." His tone brooked no argument.

With an ostentatious sigh, Yashiro sat. Itachi didn't do so much as twitch, but instead stayed silent, head still hanging.

"Apologize, Itachi."

Everyone turned angry eyes on the silent boy.

"I understand what you are trying to say," Fugaku began, an underlying note of uncharacteristic gentleness in his voice. "But ideals and reality are two different things. What you're saying is at best an ideal. Fighting and war are indeed linked with hatred. But you are too young to understand the true predicament of those who are persecuted. If you could see what a difficult position the Uchiha clan has been driven to since the founding of the village, you wouldn't speak so lightly, or impulsively."

"I'm a member of the Uchiha clan too. I know about our predicament." How could he not, with the hatred and bloodlust hammered into him at each of these vile meetings?

"Then apologize!" Yashiro shouted.

A sad look in his eyes that spoke volumes about the disappointment he felt with his people, Itachi slowly turned his gaze to Yashiro. "I'm very sorry," he said in a voice that very nearly disappeared.

Fugaku clearly heard the cry of pain in his son's heart. He understood, almost agonizingly well, Itachi's desire to avoid fighting. But he understood to an equal extent the dissatisfaction of their brethren. Or rather, Fugaku himself had had trying experiences any number of times, in the life he had lived thus far as a Konoha ninja.

Simply because he was an Uchiha, he had been excluded from the village center. The dreams he had in his youth had been cruelly shattered, for the sole reason that he was of the wrong clan.

Hokage… A fleeting desire that would never be achieved.

"We'll talk about this at home," he said, pitching his voice so that only his son could hear him.

He got no reply.

"Itachi-Sensei!" The voice was shrill enough to pierce his eardrums.

Itachi turned around.

Konoha was full of people coming and going in the evening. He himself was in his way home. After the disastrous meeting at the Nakano Shrine, his father had been engulfed with questions, and Itachi had slipped away. He had no desire to speak to his father about the supposed burden of the clan, and why they were trying to ignite another war. Instead, he'd walked around the village, trying to figure out what made him so different from those around him. Why was his clan mistreated if they were supposedly better? And why was it that the village was so light and happy, people on the street greeting him with genuine smiles, while his clan saw him only as a tool, and mistreated Tsukiko?

Tsukiko… When his father had acknowledged her as his daughter, firmly putting the clan in their place, Itachi had felt a spark of hope. Perhaps his father was on his side after all.

That hope had died the instant Itachi had opened his mouth and was berated for his ideals in front of the whole clan. Humiliating. Now, all he wanted to do was run home to Tsukiko, and tell her that she'd been called Fugaku's daughter. That would surely lift her spirits.

She'd been so sad lately that he could hardly stand it. Every time she looked up at him with barely-contained misery, his chest hurt so much that he felt seconds away from collapsing. And the anger! Itachi hated the unabating fury coiling in his stomach at the sight of his fellow clan mates ignoring or tormenting her, simply because she was given a special ability. The hypocrisy of it all was sickening. They did to her what they claimed the village was doing to them, and no one seemed to realize this.

So, no, Itachi wasn't in the mood to talk to anyone. Nevertheless, he turned at the sound of his name.

Standing before him was a girl he'd seen before. Older than he was. The girl who had been his teammate a few months ago.

"Himuka. Himuka Suzukaze" the girl said with a smile, as if reading the confused Itachi's mind. That was the first time Itachi had ever heard her last name. "Congratulations on your promotion! And where's Tsukiko-Sensei? I wanted to congratulate her as well."

"Thanks. She's at home. I'll pass the message along." Himuka was older than he was. But as a ninja, Itachi was far more experienced. Given his strange position, he was at loss for what words to use. Should he speak more politely? Or informally? After a moment of indecision, he landed on "Thanks," and short, clipped sentences to explain where Tsukiko was. Itachi wasn't interested in a long conversation.

Not noticing this indecision on his part, Himuka looked at him with shining eyes. "I really admire you guys for getting such incredible results in the Chunin Exams! I'm proud that we worked on the same team together, even if it was only for a little while."

Itachi didn't know how to respond. He wasn't fighting so people would praise him, or be proud of him. It felt good to be acknowledged, yes, but it didn't mean anything. He would continue to excel, regardless of what others thought about him. Unlike Tsukiko, he didn't have to prove his worth every step of the way. Praise meant something to her, and absolutely nothing to him.

"Are you still on the team with that quiet guy?" He asked awkwardly, not sure what he could say to break the uncomfortable silence.

"You mean Yoji, right?"

' _Ah, that was his name.'_ He felt a brief spark of shame. ' _Tsukiko would've remembered…'_

"Around the same time it was decided you'd be taking the Chunin Exams, Yoji was transferred somewhere else, and I haven't seen him since."

"Transferred?"

"It was pretty sudden. He didn't even say goodbye."

Itachi's intuition flared. What kind of transfer happened so suddenly that you couldn't even say goodbye? There was only one thing he could think of.

The Anbu.

But Yoji had only just been made a genin. And Itachi couldn't remember him doing anything vaguely amazing when they went on missions together.

"I'm working hard right now, with Yuki-Sensei and two new teammates," Himuka recounted in a bright tone.

As he nodded his head politely while she continued, Itachi carved the name Yoji into a corner of his mind, something to be investigated later, once he was part of the Anbu himself.

The only thing left to do now was to wait…

* * *

NOW:

' _It's time,'_ Tsukiko thought, a thrill of anticipation in her system. Her students were about to fight, to see which of the techniques they'd honed over the past month would overpower the other. For teammates, nothing could be more exciting, or challenging. The two girls were familiar enough with each other's styles that it really was anyone's guess who would win. Chiyo had the superior strength and an understanding of her opponent's psyche, but Midori's speed and quick-thinking were not to be underestimated.

It was a clear, beautiful day, a light breeze blowing through the arena, surrounded on all sides by a stadium filled with people. The wind carried the smell of the food provided for their guests, as well as a soothing respite from the overhanging sun, peering into the arena as if to watch the tournament with equal interest as those beneath it.

And the fights so far had been spectacular. From her perch next to the seated Hokage, being his personal go-between with the Proctor in the arena, Tsukiko had the best view available.

In the first match, Naruto had once again displayed an incredible understanding of the Shadow Clone jutsu, perfectly splitting his chakra evenly between them to avoid Neji's Byakugan seeking out the real one. Even more impressive was his control of the Nine-Tails' chakra, which overpowered Neji's Eight-Trigrams Sixty-Four Palms technique, a deadly attack that completely shut down Naruto's own chakra flow.

That had been a surprise. A main branch technique being mastered by a side branch member was unheard of. And at such a young age too. Neji Hyuga was truly a prodigy, the likes of which popped up every few generations or so.

But, he was still burdened down by his past, which was finally brought to light. Tsukiko had kept a close watch on Midori, knowing that she would be affected by her friend's pain, especially when he revealed his own curse mark, branded into his forehead at a young age. It hadn't been a pretty story, and Neji's bitterness against his clan was something Tsukiko could empathize with, far more than even she'd care to admit.

Still, in spite of it all, it caused quite the upset when Naruto won, bursting out of a tunnel and catching the Hyuga boy off-guard with a vicious blow to the chin.

And so, Neji lost, to the shock of those who knew him and perhaps everyone in the stadium, expecting the fight between a gifted Hyuga and a hated nobody to end differently. But, to Tsukiko at least, the outcome of the match had seemed necessary, for both boys. Naruto was acknowledged as a skilled fighter, and Neji was shown that someone could change their fate, if they tried hard enough. Lessons that would benefit both later in life.

And yet, Tsukiko couldn't say that either of them had displayed the necessary qualities of a chunin. While powerful, both were too emotionally immature, and were distracted from the mission by personal desires to fight. As a leader, that would get your teammates killed.

Next ought to have been Sasuke and Gaara's fight, but her fool of a younger brother hadn't arrived yet. Kakashi's doing, she supposed, telling the Hokage such. He had been training Sasuke on a cliff several miles away, and with the man's infuriating propensity for being late...

It had been a close call. The Hokage, quite understandably, was about to disqualify the young Uchiha when the Kazekage insisted they wait for him, wanting to show off the might of his own genin. The Leaf leader had agreed sportingly, not really wanting to disqualify the boy with his adoptive older sister glowering to his right.

' _Lord Kazekage…'_ Perhaps it was the concern of an imminent attack, but Tsukiko couldn't shake the sense of danger creeping down her spine at the close proximity to the powerful man. Understandable, perhaps, as he was the leader of a ninja village and was expected to have a certain aura that demanded respect, but still…

"It appears your students are up next, Tsukiko," the Hokage interrupted her thoughts, smiling. "I hope you and young Masuko have imparted all you'd hoped to in this past month."

Tsukiko's lips quirked, putting her suspicions to the side for the moment. "Well, I wouldn't go that far, but Masuko certainly put Chiyo through her paces. And Midori has learned a new trick or two."

"And your own training?" The old man prompted with a sly grin, mischief in his old eyes.

"I think I got the idea after your...demonstration," the young woman said wryly.

And in truth, she had a much better understanding of Lightning as an element after this last month. Creating lightning by superheating the air wasn't necessarily a bad approach, but far too energy-consuming. Instead, all she had to do was to create friction between the positive and negative energies within her own chakra, and then control the resulting electricity. She was by no means a master now, but she felt confident enough to fight with it, at least. Of course, the real challenge had been the creation and implementation of new footwork, a mix of Fire and Water to keep the swirling energy firmly in her control. Lightning needed to be firmly grounded, but free to flow where it pleased.

"I'm glad." Lord Third leaned back in his chair as the proctor, Genma Shiranui, called for silence. He was the replacement for Hayate, whose body had been found by an early morning patrol just over a week ago. There was an ongoing investigation open, but the pride of the Leaf wouldn't be set back by the death of a proctor, and another had been swiftly found.

"Next up, Chiyo Mitsuru and Midori Hisoka," Genma announced, glancing up where the genin were waiting. He was a tall man in the usual chunin outfit, with the addition of a bandanna over his shoulder-length brown hair, and a smooth twig hanging out of his mouth.

The crowd, excited after watching Shikamaru versus Temari, took a moment to settle, still talking about what had just happened only minutes ago.

The pair had given the audience another fantastic fight, with Shikamaru showing off his strategic thinking, forcing his opponent to unwillingly fall within reach of his shadows by using his surroundings to the utmost advantage. It was especially welcome after the disappointment of Kankuro forfeiting his fight against Shino without even stepping into the ring.

That, coupled with Hayate's mysterious death, rose several red flags in the minds of the Leaf officials, which was exactly why Tsukiko could see two Anbu Black Ops squads being dispersed amongst the crowd, protecting the gates and the public from any acts of aggression that occurred. However, only eight ninjas for this huge arena was severely understaffed, meaning that the rest were busy protecting the borders from a possible invasion. And the Anbu weren't trying to hide their presence _at all._

' _Anbu out in plain sight. Ridiculous. That should've been the work of the Police Force.'_

And yet, after the destruction of the Uchiha clan, no such organization had been recreated. The general public had been told it was out of respect, but Tsukiko knew the truth. There was no way Danzo would allow another group to take back the power he had gained. By allowing his Foundation members to mingle with the normal Anbu members, who took over the duties of the Police Force, he basically had a never-ending stream of information on the innermost workings in of everyone's lives. Nothing escaped his notice.

' _And yet, it had taken him several hours to be alerted to Orochimaru's presence…'_ Tsukiko mused suspiciously, trying to ignore the ache in her chest. She hadn't been in this arena since she herself had been a genin, and it was bringing back some rather painful memories. Her shoulder began to throb with a phantom pain she hadn't felt in a long while. ' _And there really should be more Anbu here to protect the guests…'_

"Begin!"

Genma's voice cut through her thoughts, and Tsukiko refocused, slightly ashamed of being distracted when her students were fighting.

Down below, Chiyo and Midori were still, their mouths moving as they spoke too quietly for anyone to hear. Chiyo grinned, crossing her arms, and Midori eased back into her stance, her own smile playing at the edges of her mouth.

Predictably, Chiyo attacked first, trying to catch Midori off-guard and get inside her range, cutting down her chakra threads' effectiveness.

Tsukiko couldn't stop the proud grin from stretching across her features as Midori backflipped several times, her strings threading together like a shield in front of her to keep Chiyo back and gain some distance.

' _As expected,'_ she thought, watching Chiyo with keen eyes. ' _We prepared for her tactics. I thought Masuko would train her to be a heavy brawler.'_

But Chiyo wasn't stopped. Her fists, armored with chakra, dealt two strong blows to the threads, shattering the barrier between them. Instantly, she was in front of a startled Midori, delivering a vicious kick to the green-eyed girl's side and sending her flying.

The older woman's eyes widened in surprise. Chiyo was a lot faster than expected. Her head snapped up, black eyes quickly finding the dark turquoise of her fellow sensei, seated in the crowd next to Kurenai and Asuma. Masuko smirked, her fang glinting menacingly as she quirked an eyebrow at Tsukiko's searching gaze.

The young jounin shook her head ruefully. ' _So that's her game.'_ She mused. ' _Chiyo couldn't possibly be expected to master chakra armor and keep her speed up with the dense energy holding her down. Masuko took years of training to build up her physical limits in order to do that. Instead, Chiyo's using—'_

"Guerilla tactics," The Third Hokage mused, watching Chiyo bounce back, away from Midori's vengeful threads, only to circle around and use her enhanced speed to get close enough to land another blow, this time to Midori's unprotected back.

Tsukiko nodded with a frown. Chiyo was conserving chakra by only armoring the limbs she was attacking with, and instead directing most of her chakra to her feet to speed up, similar to the technique used in the Body Flicker movements. Using this speed, she was getting close enough to hit, before backing out of the way of the deadly threads. Rinse and repeat.

But Midori was excellent at figuring out patterns, and Chiyo was relying too much on her continued confusion to differ her moves and angles of attack.

When Chiyo next came in with a low kick to her side, Midori's threads wrapped around her ankle and jerked, pulling her off her feet to hang upside down. And, before the dark-haired girl could recover, Midori slammed her hard into the ground, creating a crater. Then, she used the opportunity to move to a new area of the field.

It was silent for a moment, dust obscuring Chiyo's body. But just when Tsukiko was moving closer to see if her student was alright, she burst out of the ground, breathing heavily. Across her chest, a cracked blue chestplate began to fall apart, having taken the brunt of the impact.

"Geez, Midori!" Chiyo shouted, brushing off her clothes. "When did you learn to hit that hard?!"

"I could say the same to you," the timid female replied, gesturing to the dark bruises on her arms. "You got fast!"

Chiyo smiled, her expression suddenly very Masuko-like. "Oh, you haven't seen anything yet!"

Hands moving quickly, Chiyo shouted "Earthstyle: Racing Rock!"

As she shot forward in a blur of motion, so fast that she disappeared completely from sight, Tsukiko watched the ground. Sure enough, small sections were jutting back, the aftereffect of the ground giving Chiyo a push with each step, forcing her momentum forward and making her move at insane speeds when coupled with her earlier technique.

The only downside was if someone remained calm, unfazed by Chiyo's disappearance, they could, as Tsukiko had, seen the movements in the earth.

And unfortunately for Chiyo, Midori had lived for many years surrounded by Byakugan-users, whose overall sight was more powerful than any other clan. It had taught her to take in her surroundings, and her medical training had steeled her nerves. There was no panicking when operating on a patient, and the young girl had slipped into that same frame of mind now.

She laced her threads together once more, creating a dome around herself not unlike what Neji had done in his fight against Naruto and his many clones.

Chiyo appeared to her right, as Tsukiko had known she would, her armored fist smashing once more through the threads.

Or so the crowd thought, until the girl jerked her hand back with a shout of pain, blood dripping onto the dirt ground from the many lacerations in her appendage.

"What the hell?!" Chiyo nursed her bleeding limb, her eyes searching for the answer as to why she'd been hurt.

Meanwhile, Midori stitched the opening in her defense shut, her threads shining strangely as they caught the afternoon light.

The dark-haired girl's eyes widened. "Your threads have never looked like that before!"

' _That would be the Wind chakra, sharpening her chakra.'_

It was surprisingly easy to incorporate into her technique, as her threads were always made of Wind chakra. All she had to do was envision it the way she wanted, and chakra threads became chakra wires, sharp enough to slice through Chiyo's armor with relative ease.

' _She fooled her that first time,'_ Tsukiko thought, unsure whether to be proud for Midori or concerned for Chiyo's hand. Across the arena, Masuko looked like she was having the same thoughts, unsure whether to smile or frown. ' _Midori let Chiyo punch through that first shield so she would get cocky and not pay attention to the change in chakra.'_

And it would be her undoing.

Distracted by the pain, Chiyo didn't see that Midori was standing right next to the tunnel that Naruto had created, a fact she'd purposely obscured with her dome of threads.

Like Shikamaru, she used this to her advantage to attack, the tendrils coming out of the tunnel to latch on to her opponent.

"What the—?!" Chiyo was suddenly unable to move, each of her limbs held in place by tightening chakra strings. The harder she struggled, the more they tightened.

Midori burst out of her barrier, darting forward to deliver the final blow, her fist pulled back to slam into Chiyo's unprotected face.

But just before she struck, there was a slight hesitation, a clear moment of indecision as to whether she could actually hurt her best friend. Still, her momentum carried her forward.

"Haaah!" With a shout, Chiyo slammed her forehead, protected with blue chakra across her headband, into Midori's with a dull thud that echoed horribly through the otherwise silent stadium.

For it moment, it seemed to have no effect, both girls staring at each other silently. Then Midori's eyes glazed over and she fell to the ground, unconscious.

"Winner: Chiyo Mitsuru!"

Tsukiko had barely glanced at the Hokage for permission before she was out on the field, Masuko appearing a second behind her. The crowd was cheering wildly, pleased with yet another memorable battle.

Chiyo was kneeling by Midori, her own gaze slightly unfocused. "She's alright!" The young girl called, her voice relieved. "Just unconscious." She hugged her hurt arm to herself, using the bottom of her shirt to try so stop the bleeding from multiple lacerations.

Tsukiko saw the steady rise and fall of her breathing and relaxed, sighing heavily. Midori had been perfect, using the fights she'd already witnessed to incorporate Neji and Shikamaru's strategies and taking advantage of her opponent's weaknesses. But still, that hesitation would cost her the match and more than likely, her chance at being a chunin this year.

Still, all Tsukiko felt when she looked at the unconscious girl was intense pride that little Midori had been able to hold her own with the others. Perhaps she wasn't ready now, but someday very soon, she was going to be an excellent ninja. Her compassion and desire to heal others wasn't a weakness in this time of relative peace, but rather, a strength.

"I've got her," Masuko said, lifting Midori off the ground. She grinned at Chiyo, nodding her head. "Good job, kid. You pulled off our strategy perfectly. Soon it'll be time for the real test, so rest up."

Chiyo's chest swelled, and she nodded firmly, wincing slightly as the motion hurt her bleeding head. "Yes ma'am!"

Tsukiko smiled, playfully ruffling the girl's hair. "Just do your best, and you'll have no regrets. That's all anyone can ask for. Still, go get that arm looked at. You've lost a lot of blood."

Looking back up to the Hokage, Tsukiko saw another official lean in to tell him something, likely about Sasuke.

Eyes narrowing, she looked around as if she'd miraculously see him pop up somewhere. No such luck. If he didn't arrive in the next few minutes, his disqualification would be unavoidable.

' _Sasuke, where are you?'_

* * *

THEN:

"Lately, every time you come over, you end up talking about Itachi and Tsukiko," the Hokage said, sitting in his chair and puffing on his pipe.

Danzo stood at attention, watching him. He had advised Hiruzen several times before that a ninja shouldn't smoke, given that the scent of tobacco would linger on him. Hiruzen always laughed, replying that the Hokage didn't go on secret missions, so it was fine.

But Danzo hadn't been talking about the present. He was talking about being prepared. Hokage or genin, a ninja must never forget that at any given moment, in any given place, they were at war. If they needed to not be noticed by an enemy, the scent of the smoke hanging around Hiruzen would give them away.

Nothing was absolute in this world.

Unaware of what Danzo was thinking, Hiruzen emptied the ashes from his pipe into a dish on the desk, grabbed a pinch of tobacco from the container to one side, and put a flame to the bowl of the pipe. Purple smoke rose up and rolled out the window, disappearing on the wind, piercing Danzo's nose. Even as he winced at the unpleasant smell, his expression did not change in the slightest.

Hiruzen was an "acquaintance" from Danzo's days as a genin. He would never use the word "friend" to describe their relationship. Friendship was the product of feelings of collusion between human beings. People used the word "friend" for the wretched idea of leaning on another person. Danzo had never wanted to lean on someone or be leaned on himself.

Exhaling smoke, Hiruzen turned keen eyes on Danzo. "Just as you said, it's been five months since they were promoted to chunin. And, to be honest, Itachi and Tsukiko carry out their missions almost too perfectly. Even on missions using genin, they have such a grasp on each of their areas of specialization, and give such impeccable orders, it's hard to believe they're only ten. The reports they send in, too, are very nicely in order, strictly following the format."

He paused, cocking his head. "I'm interested to see what they can do separately. Taking their age and preference for teamwork into account, I've allowed Tsukiko and Itachi to go on every mission together. But if they are both equally skilled, it would be better to have them split up and double their amount of successful missions…"

Danzo, not liking the direction this was taking, chose that moment to interrupt. "So those two years as genin were a loss to both of them as well as the village, hm?"

"Better to think of it as a necessary experience." Hiruzen always considered things with a positive view. This way of his was likely what earned him his popularity among the ninja out in the light. However, shinobi were essentially creatures of the dark, their nature's lending them to be successful in war, not peace. Danzo always thought it amusing how the Anbu has been set up, as if they could keep the light and dark separate.

"Speaking of…" Hiruzen dumped ashes into the dish, and sighed. Then he sat up a little straighter in his chair. "Lately, long hours of desk work tire me out. Maybe I'm just old."

"That's your job." His tone held the faintest trace of bitterness, but went by unnoticed.

"Not a single word of sympathy for me?"

"Tell me the story you were about to start."

Snorting in amusement at Danzo's unapproachable manner, Hiruzen opened his mouth. "Fugaku Uchiha made an interesting proposal."

' _Fugaku…'_ The sour face of the head of the Military Police Force popped up in Danzo's mind, along with the feeling of dislike. That man had been a thorn in his side for several years, interfering with Anbu matters.

"He sounded out the idea of Tsukiko and Itachi joining the Anbu."

The instant he heard this, Danzo's heart leaped up, and very nearly did a little dance. He was, however, not so foolish as to allow this glee onto his face. "I see," he replied calmly, waiting for the Third Hokage to continue.

"Fugaku says that neither of them will be able to use their abilities to the fullest in the Military Police Force. He's not looking at them as his children, but from an objective perspective. Itachi has surpassed most of the adults in terms of skill with his Sharingan, and he's worried for Tsukiko. As expected, after her performance in the Chunin Exams, her abilities have stirred up negative emotions in the clan, and he thinks she would be happier working away from the compound. Fugaku believes that the two children possess unparalleled talents as shinobi, and that it's his duty as a father to guide them to a place where they can be happy and fully utilize their skills. And so he came to me with the possibility of them joining the Anbu."

A darkness in the depths of his old eyes, Hiruzen turned a questioning gaze to Danzo, but continued speaking, stating his own opinion and those of his advisors. "Homura and Koharu are totally opposed, at least to Itachi joining. They say it's preposterous to have an Uchiha in the Anbu, given its status as a special unit under the direct control of the Hokage. They asked me if I'd forgotten about how the Second Hokage established the Military Police Force."

"The Police Force was created to drive the Uchiha clan away from the central functions of the village.

"Mm." Sighing uncomfortably, Hiruzen packed tobacco in his pipe for the third time.

"Maybe you could stop while we are discussing important business, at least."

Like a child scolded by his father, Hiruzen shrugged his shoulders slightly in dissatisfaction, before setting the pipe down on his desk. "They went so far as to bring up your name, you know. Even if they did eventually agree to the boy being in the Anbu, what would you say, given your dislike of the Uchiha line? Nothing but pushback from those two."

He rubbed the bridge of his nose, a headache forming. "Of course, they agreed that Tsukiko would be a fine addition to the Anbu, but how can I go along with that? If we take her and not Itachi, it'll only further fan the flames of dissent with the Uchiha. They already feel that we are against them, and adding the one girl with the ability to make the Sharingan useless to the special unit of the Hokage is just asking for conflict. No, one cannot join without the other. Still, those two were quite adamant that you would refuse."

Homura and Koharu of the Konoha Council. They were also "acquaintances" of his since childhood, old people with no great talent who had not stood out during the harder times of the fierce Great War, when so many of their comrades died. They had managed to live such long lives through luck alone. But they had the self-awareness at least to know that they should gratefully accept the honorary positions on the Council. They didn't have the power to push their own opinions through without leaning on someone with a bigger, more authoritative voice.

"So I assume you're also—"

"Can't we just let him in, then?"

Hiruzen's eyes widened slightly, a note of suspicion rising up in them. Before, he'd acted like an old friend with Danzo, but now, his awareness as the Hokage kicked in. Naturally, he also thought Danzo would be opposed.

"You understand that in order for Tsukiko to join, Itachi must, as well?"

But Danzo was not opposed in the slightest. Quite the contrary. Fugaku's proposal was a godsend. Right from the start, he had planned for both children to join the Anbu, whatever he had to do to make it happen.

"Yes, I understand. I see no problem with Itachi joining as well. It would be better, in fact, for young Tsukiko to have someone she knows and trusts with her, to help her adjust."

Hiruzen's eyes narrowed slightly, and Danzo wondered if he'd overdone it a little. But he needed both children. Itachi Uchiha was an essential element in fulfilling Danzo's ambitions, and Tsukiko was a weapon the likes of which he hadn't counted on. Her little showing at the Chunin Exams had made her more valuable than Itachi, in the long run. Ideally, he'd like to quietly shuttle her off to the Foundation to become a tool for his disposal, but her position in the Uchiha clan made that all but impossible. Instead, he'd planned on separating the two children, and fuel the hatred of the Uchiha clan against her, switching her loyalties to him and the village. But all that hinged on her being made an Anbu member, something he feared Fugaku would never allow. The fact that the proposal had come from that side was nothing more than a windfall.

"I know you're partial to Itachi, but I thought you would've shown some disapproval of putting him in the Anbu." Hiruzen didn't try to hide the probing look in his eyes.

Danzo was calm in the face of the other man's suspicion. "Itachi is the sort of ninja you see once every hundred years, and we've been further given his match in Tsukiko. Even if he is an Uchiha, we cannot afford to not take advantage of everything he has to offer the village."

"That answer sounds very much like you." The Third Hokage nodded deeply, as if he was convincing himself. "If you approve, then I don't have any objection to the two joining the Anbu, either. To eliminate this rivalry between the village and the Uchihas, we need to first win over the hearts of the young people. Bringing Itachi and Tsukiko into the center of village life should be a good opportunity for that."

Danzo would never agree with Hiruzen's optimistic thinking. But he was grateful that the Hokage approved of Tsukiko's and Itachi's entries into the Anbu, whatever his reason.

"But Itachi and Tsukiko are only ten. We need to see that they're ready for the Anbu."

"A mission to join the Anbu, hm?" Danzo didn't mind in the slightest.

"Exactly."

The bandaged man smiled then, the first sign of emotion he'd shown this whole meeting. "Would you leave that to me?"

* * *

NOW:

Tsukiko glared down at the empty arena, her temper starting to flare. Was Sasuke coming, or not? At this point, it would serve him right if he was disqualified! Sasuke and Kakashi were both showing a complete lack of respect for the proceedings and for the two Kages seated next to her.

"Lord Hokage," she said stiffly, leaning over and lowering her voice. "I'm afraid there's still no sign of Sasuke."

"Right," the old man said with a sigh. "Then we have no choice." He lowered his head, disappointed. "We'll just have to proceed. We've kept these good people waiting long enough."

"Ten more minutes," the Kazekage interrupted, his voice smooth and convincing.

"Huh?" Both Tsukiko and the Hokage turned to the man next the them.

The majority of the Kazekage's face was covered by a white cloth, but his blue Kage hat did little to hide his eyes, which were looking ahead appraisingly. "Surely we can give him another ten minutes."

"Lord Kazekage?" Tsukiko raised her eyebrow questioningly. ' _Can this truly be all about Gaara fighting against him?'_

"This is what the crowd's been waiting for," he explained, glancing around as if to prove his point. "It would be a cruel blow to cancel. They might even turn ugly. After waiting this long, surely another ten minutes won't hurt."

"Hmm." The Third Hokage looked around the arena, noting the steady rise in angry voices.

Tsukiko stared at the Kazekage. That was the most he'd said in her presence, and there was something...familiar about his tones and speaking style. He was convincing, but in an almost sinister way that had sparked a quick moment of recognition in her mind that she wasn't able to place before it faded.

' _Damn, I'm too distracted. I need to focus on keeping the Hokage safe. Directing my anger at two people who aren't even here is a waste of energy and attention.'_

"There is something in what Lord Kazekage says, I must admit." The Third Hokage spoke after a long moment of silence. He turned to his Sand counterpart. "Very well, then. We'll give Sasuke another ten minutes to appear before cancelling the match."

Lord Kazekage said nothing, but something in his eyes flickered, appearing pleased.

"Go," the Hokage ordered, gesturing to Tsukiko while keeping an eye on the blue-clad leader of the Sand. "Tell Genma my decision."

"Of course."

Tsukiko took a step back, then leapt into the air and into the ring.

Genma was just standing in the middle, ignoring a shouting Naruto who was going on about how they couldn't cancel the match.

"Lord Hokage wants to wait ten more minutes," she said briefly, her voice clipped with irritation. Tsukiko waited just long enough for him to nod before appearing back beside the Hokage several seconds later.

"Sir, I'd like to apologize on Sasuke's behalf," she said stiffly. "He should know better."

The Third Hokage smiled warmly, waving her apology away. "It's not your fault," he said amiably. "If anything, I should've known this would happen, given that he was training with Kakashi." He sighed. "So, seeing as we have ten minutes, tell me, Tsukiko. Have you decided to accept that mission I mentioned to you the last time we spoke?"

Tsukiko quickly caught his meaning. The Kazekage was likely listening, and information on the discovery of the missing Amaya Shrine was not something you freely gave to the leader of a rival village, allied or not.

"Well, I'm not sure, to tell you the truth. I'd have to leave the village for a fair amount of time, and I don't even know what sort of results a mission like this would yield."

"Very true," the old man admitted, leaning back. "Still, there's a possibility you could find some information on that little problem of ours." He looked at her meaningfully.

' _The Curse Mark…'_ Tsukiko bit her lip, nodding. Akihiro had traveled all over the Five Great Nations, and had probably learned any number of things. Curse Marks and the like had been used frequently in the first Great Ninja War, so it wasn't completely insane that he'd researched them.

"At any rate, I've already given you official permission to leave the village whenever you are ready," the old man continued. "The document is written up in my office, so there shouldn't be an issue if anyone objects to your leaving."

' _Homura and Koharu…'_ The two were elderly shinobi on the Konoha Council who had been trying for three years now to keep Tsukiko on a short leash. They claimed that sending her too far away was dangerous, as other villages would try to steal her eyes. As such, they objected to any mission that put her too close to the borders of the Land of Fire.

"Thank you, Lord Hokage." Tsukiko bowed her head, her thoughts troubled. She just wasn't sure if it was a good idea to leave Sasuke right now, with Orochimaru dangling power in front of him like a fishhook. The boy was too smart to stumble blindly into a trap, but he might go willingly into it if he thought he could gain power.

' _It all depends on whether or not I can promise Sasuke more power than Orochimaru…'_

But she didn't know if she could.

"Alright, the time limit has expired," Genma announced, looking closely at his watch.

Tsukiko crossed her arms with a sigh. They'd been sitting in silence for the past few minutes, only for the crowd to be even angrier and Sasuke to still be missing.

Genma raised his hand. "So I'm officially calling this match—"

He stopped suddenly, his attention on a leaf that fluttered past him, seemingly out of thin air.

' _Finally!'_

A small whirlwind appeared in the arena, stirring up leaves and dirt before settling to reveal the two missing shinobi.

"Sorry we're late," Kakashi said loudly, his voice carrying. "You wouldn't believe the traffic!"

The older man flinched suddenly, feeling as if he'd been pierced by something. He turned, and paled slightly as he met the furious gaze of the white-haired woman standing next to the Hokage.

Kakashi raised his hand peacefully, but Tsukiko's glare darkened further. If looks could kill, Kakashi would be six feet under.

Across the arena, from her spot next to Kurenai, Masuko flinched. "Geez, mama bear mode has been activated! Kakashi might actually die…"

Asuma chuckled nervously. "I didn't think Tsukiko could even make that expression."

Kurenai nodded. "Even Lord Hokage looks uncomfortable sitting next to her."

As for Tsukiko, she was firmly trapped somewhere between relief and fury. Relief that Sasuke had made it (sort of) in time and that he was safe. And fury that he hadn't arrived sooner and had to make a dramatic entrance to play off that fact.

' _His hair is longer,'_ she thought distractedly, switching her glare to the younger boy.

Sasuke steadfastly refused to look at her, despite feeling daggers in his side.

Kakashi leaned over, muttering conspiratorially. "I say when this is over, we make a run for it. Otherwise, neither of us will live to see the second round."

Sasuke's face didn't change, his attention fixed on the Proctor as he waited for him to speak. He did, however, incline his head slightly in agreement.

"And you are?" Genma asked finally, getting a slight revenge as he allowed the two tardy shinobi to suffer under Tsukiko's glare and his quiet refusal to speak, showing that he was also unimpressed with their actions.

"I'm Sasuke Uchiha," the boy answered solemnly.

Predictably, the crowd started cheering wildly, and Naruto started shouting about how "It's about time!" and "I thought you were too scared to face me!"

Watching the two boys banter, Tsukiko felt her anger cool just slightly. It was good to see Sasuke acting his age and enjoying himself. If he had a good time during the matches, then she would be happy.

' _But he's still getting one hell of a training session,'_ she thought darkly. ' _He has no idea what's coming.'_

Kakashi rubbed the back of his neck, turning to Genma apologetically. "Sorry if we kept you waiting, but, um, how late are we? I mean, it's not like Sasuke is, well, disqualified or anything, right?" He laughed nervously, clearly sweating. "Because, um, Tsukiko might actually kill me if that were the case."

Genma sighed, biting his stick. "Like master, like pupil, even down to your lousy sense of time."

"Well, what about it?" Now Kakashi looked actually worried.

The Proctor continued, enjoying the teasing. "You know, you were so late that we extended the deadline for you, twice in fact. And it's lucky for you that we did, because you just barely made it. No, he's not disqualified." He glanced behind him. "So I think you escaped death, but I'd still hate to be in your shoes."

"Oh, that's a relief!" Kakashi relaxed visibly. "You had me worried there for a minute. So, we're okay?"

Tsukiko heard a slight laugh from the old man next to her, and she turned her head. "Yes, Lord Hokage?" She asked, her voice deceptively light-hearted.

"Just go easy on them," the old man chuckled. "Kakashi means well, even if his timing leaves much to be desired."

The young woman nodded stiffly. "I'll keep that in mind."

Down in the arena, Gaara stepped out of the tunnel for the fighters, taking his place a few feet away from Sasuke, his arms crossed in his usual stance.

"Alright." Genma stepped forward. "The rules for this match are the same as in the preliminaries. The fight continues until one of you dies, admits defeat, or is incapacitated. However, I can stop the match, but that's solely my decision."

Gaara's shoulders shook with laughter, a maniacal expression across his face. Sasuke merely raised an eyebrow.

Genma slowly raised his hand, allowing the tension to rise in the crowd.

The Hokage traded glances with the Kazekage, and Tsukiko found herself making eye contact with the two Sand ninja attending to their leader. They nodded in acknowledgment of the moment, everyone realizing that this match would determine who was stronger: the Leaf or the Sand.

"Begin!" The Proctor leapt back as he shouted, clearing the field.

Sand exploded out of Gaara's gourd, and Sasuke, who hadn't seen the preliminaries, leapt back in surprise, putting some distance between them.

But Gaara seemed distracted, suddenly clutching at his head as if in pain. Tsukiko couldn't hear what he was saying, but Sasuke seemed a little freaked out.

Gaara seemed to gain control of himself after a long moment, his sand falling to the ground and curling around his feet.

"Here goes!" Sasuke threw several shuriken, testing Gaara's speed.

The sand blocked the projectiles easily, turning into a clone of Gaara that leapt at Sasuke and exploded in a deadly wave.

Sasuke jumped up as the wave smashed down where he'd been just moments ago, but the clone was expecting this, tossing Sasuke's shuriken back at him.

The Uchiha boy blocked the weapons with a kunai knife and landed in front of the clone, immediately launching into a series of kicks and jabs. He slammed his arm into the clone's throat, only for it to be stuck there for a moment. But before the sand could enclose him, Sasuke punched the head of the clone and destroyed it. Then, inside Gaara's range, he aimed his fist at the Sand boy's face.

The sand rose up to protect its master, but that was a feint.

Sasuke vanished, appearing behind Gaara with deja-vu-inducing speed, exactly mimicking Lee's fighting style. The Leaf genin's fist made contact with his face, and Gaara was thrown backwards, his sand hurrying to cushion the landing. Already, the sand armor he employed was cracking, and Sasuke had only landed one blow.

Tsukiko's eyes quickly spotted Kakashi, standing next to Guy and Lee, who both looked shocked at Sasuke's sudden upgrade in Taijutsu.

' _Nice,'_ Tsukiko thought appreciatively. ' _Kakashi has fought against Guy so many times, with a Sharingan, no less, that it was probably no sweat to recreate his style and teach Sasuke.'_

Like Masuko, Kakashi had realized that speed and physical attacks worked the best against Gaara's defense.

Gaara slowly stood, glaring at Sasuke. A small chunk of his face appeared to fall away.

"So that's your sand armor, huh?" The young Uchiha smirked. "Come on." He beckoned Gaara forward.

But the red-haired genin made no motion, preferring to defend and attack when his opponent was in range.

"If you won't do it," Sasuke growled. "Then I will!"

With a burst of wind, Sasuke was gone, appearing behind Gaara again. Like Chiyo, Sasuke seemed determined to stick to guerilla attacks, hitting fast and getting out of the way.

The sand was a little faster, but unable to block the kick that sent Gaara flying back.

"What's the matter, Gaara?" Sasuke asked, his leg still extended. "Is that all you've got?" He narrowed his eyes as Gaara stood, but continued to smirk. "I'm going to tear off all of your armor!"

Tsukiko watched with wide eyes as Sasuke shot forward again, pride replacing any anger she may have felt. To see Sasuke in his element, fully convinced he was stronger than his opponent, filled her with intense happiness. Despite all of his talent, Sasuke was often made to feel like he wasn't strong enough, which is what made him strive for power. To see him confident for once was incredibly gratifying.

He ran around Gaara, his speed nearly creating a small tornado. If she had to guess, Tsukiko would say he was just a little slower than Lee with his weights removed. But that was still fast enough to beat Gaara's sand.

Again and again, Sasuke got past the sand and landed one or two blows before backing away. Soon, Gaara was on the ground, large cracks visible on his arms and legs.

But Sasuke wasn't wholly unaffected. The speed was putting a definite strain on him, from his heavy breathing.

' _That can't be all,'_ Tsukiko thought, crossing her arms. ' _Lee was faster and stronger, but he still couldn't win. Sasuke has to have another technique at the ready.'_

Gaara seemed tired of playing, and gathered his sand to him, creating a sphere around himself with a small hole in the front that was quickly closing.

Sasuke darted forward, trying to hit him one more time before the sand blocked him completely.

Spikes shot out, hitting Sasuke, while his fist punched into the hardened wall protecting his opponent. It was like trying to punch steel by this point, and from the pained expression on his face, Tsukiko guessed that he had broken or at least fractured his hand. From her viewpoint, she could see blood from a wound on his face, his leg, and of course, his bleeding knuckles.

' _Damn!'_ Tsukiko bit her lip hard, drawing blood. ' _And here I thought Midori's dome of chakra wires was a great defense. For a genin, or even a chunin, it's going to be tough to break through that sand without some serious Ninjutsu…'_

Watching closely, her keen eyes saw something forming in the air above Gaara. Eyes turning yellow, Tsukiko decided to get a read on this kid's chakra.

Pushing her dome out, she felt the chakras of all the people in the arena, but her concern was only for the two on the field.

As she'd suspected, there was something there. An...eye?

' _He must use that to be able to see outside his defense…'_

But what was really worrying...was the chakra inside the sand sphere. It was spiking all over the place, a mixture of Gaara's and...something else.

Tsukiko narrowed her eyes as Sasuke charged, throwing kunai knives to distract the sand before appearing from behind.

But that trick wasn't going to work anymore. With the eye above watching, the spikes appeared just before he hit and gave him several more wounds for his efforts. They followed him as he jerked back, leaping into the air to slam his foot into the top of the sphere before jumping off and landing several feet away.

' _Sasuke's still faster than the sand, but he has to be smart.'_ She felt a smile tug at her lips. ' _Come on, Sasuke! Kakashi said he was going to teach you his signature move. If you managed to learn it, you can win this!'_

From the spike in his chakra, Tsukiko could tell that Sasuke had activated his Sharingan before the last attack. Now, he leapt all the way back to the arena wall, crouching near the top of it as he performed a series of hand signs.

Her heart rate increased as she saw him grasp his right wrist with his left hand, the same movement Kakashi had shown her for summoning lightning. "So he did learn it!" She exclaimed, beaming.

The Hokage glanced at her questioningly, but said nothing, too engrossed in what was about to happen.

Gaara's chakra continued to fluctuate, becoming less his and more of the other energy.

A ball of lightning appeared in Sasuke's hand, that familiar chirping noise becoming louder and louder. The lightning tore at the rock of the wall, and as he moved his hand, the damage grew as the energy obliterated anything it got too close to.

' _Lightning will beat and Earth jutsu every time.'_ Tsukiko thought smugly, practically bouncing with pride. Now the training was obvious. First Kakashi built up Sasuke's speed and stamina, before teaching him a second chakra nature, which was far beyond the grasp of even most chunin. And for him to have learned the Chidori, a physical manifestation of Lightning chakra in its rawest form, in only a month was beyond even her expectations.

"He's amazing!" Tsukiko grinned, turning to her left. "Isn't he, Ita—"

Horror stopped words in her throat, and her good mood evaporated at the scene her mind conjured up in that moment of vulnerability.

It was like a snapshot of a future stolen from her, a glimpse of what could have been had that night not gone so horribly wrong.

Itachi was seated next to her, smiling with barely-contained pride for his younger brother, the red Hokage hat he wore doing little to hide his expression. He caught her eye and his smile widened.

"Tsukiko?" The Third Hokage's concerned voice snapped her out of it just in time for Sasuke to go tearing down the side of the arena wall, kicking up plumes of dust with every step.

But Tsukiko wasn't watching anymore, too overwhelmed with what she had just seen. She had gotten too excited, had fallen back into her mental frame from three years ago, where every joy (especially where Sasuke was involved) was shared with Itachi. And that mindset had conjured up an image she in her heart of hearts had dreamed of since she was small.

In another world, Itachi would be the Hokage, the first of the Uchiha line, and she would be his key advisor. Together, they would have ended war, brought peace to all the villages, and would have watched Sasuke grow into his power with the adoration of two older siblings. That's how it was meant to be.

Before everything had been ripped away.

Tsukiko stepped back, clutching at her shoulder where he'd stabbed her, where he'd tried to kill her. Just like everyone else.

"Tsukiko? Are you alright?"

She met the Third Hokage's rising concern with a weak smile. "It's fine, Lord Third. Just an old wound playing up."

Shaking, Tsukiko forced herself to watch, trying to find the mental stability to reactivate her Gensogan, and failing miserably.

It was through blank eyes that she saw Sasuke dart forward with a loud cry, a blur of light and smoke. His Chidori, the only Ninjutsu technique Kakashi didn't copy from someone else, was meant land a blow of immeasurable force at incredible speeds. A blade of pure energy that couldn't be stopped. Gaara's defense stood no chance.

The spikes tried to stop him, but Sasuke was moving far too quickly, and his hand, engulfed with deadly lightning, slammed through Gaara's sand like a hot knife through butter.

The Third Hokage leaned forward, eyes wide. "That technique—it's Kakashi's!"

He turned to Tsukiko. "Did you know that he was teaching this move to Sasuke?"

She smiled weakly, clearing her throat. "Uh, yes sir, I did know."

"Hmm." His piercing eyes took in her form. Her hand, still clenching her left shoulder, was shaking slightly, and her eyes were wide and unfocused.

"Tsukiko," He said finally. "Go check in with Kakashi for me. I'd like to know exactly how long Sasuke took to learn the Lightning Blade, and how many times he can use it. I don't want the boy to die from overusing his chakra with such a dangerous technique."

It was an obvious dismissal, no matter how kindly he said it or what reasons he gave. He was worried about her, and clearly thought she needed a break from her duties.

"But, Lord Third—" She glanced at the Kazekage, who was too engrossed in the fight to notice them.

"That's an order," he said gently. "Return when you have the information I asked for."

Silently nodding as shame colored her face, Tsukiko used the Body Flicker technique to appear on the opposite side of the arena, near where Kakashi, Guy, and some of the Leaf genin were standing. She didn't approach, however, taking a moment to gather herself and continuing to watch the fight. This was Sasuke's big moment, and she would not let the memory of his older brother intrude.

Suddenly, a heart-wrenching scream echoed from the field below, and all thought was wiped from Tsukiko's mind except to locate the source of the pained sound that raised the hair on the back of her neck.

"BLOOD! THAT'S MY BLOOD!"

' _Gaara?!'_

The screams were coming from inside the sand sphere, and were so loud and painful, one would believed that the young Sand ninja was being tortured.

' _It looks like Chiyo was right,'_ she thought grimly, finding the dark-haired girl standing next to Naruto. She was covering her mouth with both hands, and looked about two seconds away from diving into the arena. ' _I don't think Gaara's ever been cut before. The trauma of seeing your own blood and feeling that pain for the first time...I can't even imagine.'_

Sasuke, meanwhile, seemed to be unable to pull his hand out. Lightning flared as he used his Chidori a second time, loosening the sand enough to yank himself free.

But something followed him.

A long clawed hand, colored like sand but with blue, vein-like cracks on it, reached out for the young Uchiha.

"What the hell is that?!" Tsukiko ran forward, skidding to a stop next to Kakashi as she tried to make sense of what she was seeing.

"Tsukiko? Where did you come from?"

The arm couldn't grab Sasuke in time, and slowly pulled back into the sphere.

The white-haired jounin activated her Gensogan, switching to Wind to get a read on whatever the hell that thing was.

What she saw was a mass of angry red energy, somewhat reminiscent of the Nine-Tailed Fox in terms of structure and negative chakra, but on a much smaller scale.

' _Is that...another Tailed Beast?'_

It wouldn't be the first time a person was used to control a Tailed Beast, and explained the Kazekage's interest in Gaara's success. Used properly, Gaara could become a formidable weapon for the Sand village, but...he was just a boy…

"Tsukiko-Sensei! What's going on?!" Chiyo's pleading voice broke through her thoughts, and she looked up to see the others watching her. "Can you see what that was?"

Before Tsukiko could answer, the thing inside the sphere shrieked, shaking the ground and echoing through the stadium.

And then the sphere began to crack.

The sand bulged grotesquely for a moment, then fell away to reveal Gaara, breathing heavily and clutching tightly to his injured left shoulder, blood staining his clothing and dripping down his hand.

"He looks...alright," Chiyo said, unconvinced.

"Perhaps," Tsukiko agreed, unable to feel any more of the angry chakra. "Looks like he got himself under—"

She broke off, feeling a subtle change in the air. In front of her, white feathers floated down, tempting her to sleep.

' _Genjutsu.'_

Contemptuously, she switched to Fire, banishing the feathers and any trace of suggestion from her mind.

"Kakashi, do you feel it?" Guy asked from behind her.

"Yeah, a Genjutsu," the silver-haired man replied.

"Release!"

"Release!"

All around them, everyone was asleep. Only Sakura had been fast enough to avoid getting trapped in the Genjutsu. But across the stadium, Tsukiko saw several Leaf ninja, including Masuko and the other senseis, still moving around.

"The Hokage!" She said with a sudden realization, turning her attention to the man whose company she'd just left.

Slowly, almost as if the world was temporarily moving in slow motion, she saw the two aides to the Kazekage remove something from their cloaks, and then a cloud of dark smoke obscured her view.

"Lord Hokage!" Guy cried, the both of them moving forward.

"Leave it to us!" A squad of Anbu shot over their heads, running to protect the Third Hokage.

"Like hell! I'm going too!" Tsukiko shot after them, her heart pounding rapidly.

' _Damn it! The Sand really was planning an invasion after all…'_

Landing on the rooftop with the other eight Anbu, Tsukiko was immediately noted by the white-garbed Anbu captain. "Squad One above. Squad Two below! Protect the nobles at all cost. Amaya, clear this smoke away!"

"Yes sir!" She stepped forward, eyes glowing yellow.

Two Sand ninjas leapt out of the fog, aiming straight for her, but the Anbu captain was faster.

"You will not interfere!" He shouted, and with a flash of kunai, the Suna shinobi lay dead. "Amaya, now!"

Sucking in a deep breath, Tsukiko shot a burst of air from her mouth that fanned out, clearing the smoke to reveal the Kazekage, his arm around the Hokage's neck with a kunai glinting threateningly in front of the old man's face.

Before anyone could move, the Kazekage jumped into the air, taking the Hokage with him to the top of the roof.

And the two dead Sand ninjas began moving, two forms bursting from the clothing of each corpse to land on the four corners of the orange and white-tiled roof.

All four of these new shinobi were Sound ninjas, probably in their teenage years. One boy, with dark hair and six arms, smirked at the Leaf ninjas.

"Finally, it's my time."

"We've all been waiting for this." The new speaker was a boy with silver hair and a second head on the back of his neck. "I was so frustrated hiding in that disguise."

"You're all sweaty, too," added a girl with red hair and a strange hat. "So gross."

"Come on," the last one interrupted, bald except for some odd tufts of orange hair. "We're all friends here, right?"

"Sound ninja!" Tsukiko growled. "More of Orochimaru's pets!"

"Then we don't have time to waste!" The Anbu captain declared. "Let's go! We have to backup Lord Hokage! Beware of traps!"

"Yes sir!" The four Anbu went different directions, leaving Tsukiko to advance in front, trying to keep the attention on herself and draw their fire.

"Do it," the Kazekage ordered.

"Right!" The Sound ninja adopted identical poses. "Ninja Arts: Four Flames Formation!"

A purple barrier appeared around them, cutting off the Sound ninjas, the Kazekage, and the Hokage from the rest of the village.

Tsukiko stopped herself before she touched the barrier, but one of the Anbu ninja weren't so lucky. He slammed into it and instantly burst into flames.

"Aaaah!" His scream was long and loud, but faded as he was swiftly devoured by the fire.

"Damn!" The Anbu captain landed next to Tsukiko, the other two behind him. "We have to figure out a way past this without dying. Any ideas, Tsukiko?"

The informal use of her name made her turn, half-recognizing the voice. "Akio?"

"It's been a while," he said shortly. "Nice to see you. Now, do you have any ideas on how we can break through this barrier?"

"Well, it seems to be a focused form of Fire. Maybe Water?" She offered, falling back into the old camaraderie they'd shared when she was an Anbu ninja.

"Try it," he ordered.

Tsukiko's eyes turned blue, and she gathered her chakra, reaching for the water in the river behind the stadium, where she began to pull it towards her.

"Well, I never. The Sand village has betrayed the Leaf village?" The Hokage growled, disdain dripping from every word.

"The treaty between our two villages was simply a trick to make you let down your guard," the Kazekage replied. "This petty little battle game ends now. From this point on, the course of history will change."

"What are you saying?" Even with a kunai at his throat, the Hokage was calm and in control. "That you're going to start a war?"

"That's right," the Sand leader declared.

"I don't think so!" With a shout, Tsukiko pointed all the water she'd gathered at the barrier, freezing it into several dagger-like shards of ice. They hit the barrier hard, melting away like popsicles.

"Try again!" Akio placed a hand on her shoulder, familiar with how to give her his chakra. "Pull more water, and make a wave!"

Meanwhile, inside the barrier, the Kages continued as if she hadn't spoken.

"Armed conflict resolves nothing," the Hokage said firmly. "We should seek a resolution through negotiation. There's still time, Lord Kazekage. You can reconsider."

The younger man laughed softly, closing his eyes. "Perhaps the fear of death makes one more cowardly with age, Sarutobi-Sensei."

The Hokage's eyes widened. "You!"

All of this went unheard by Tsukiko, who was too busy trying to hold up a massive amount of water to drop onto the barrier. As it inevitably evaporated, she would switch to lightning, and the water would conduct the deadly current along the barrier, hopefully overwhelming it.

"Captain!" One of the Anbu, sent by Akio to check the inside of the building, returned. "As expected, we won't be able to go underneath. The barrier continues down past the roof and blocks off the ceiling of the floor below.

"So the Hokage is completely trapped inside unless he can kill one of the casters or we can break it," Akio summed up, bitterly.

"Doing my best here!" Tsukiko growled, sweat dripping down her forehead. The sphere of water above her head was steadily growing larger, but it wasn't anywhere near enough to last longer than a second or two against the flames of the barrier. Determinedly, she increased the amount of water flowing upwards from the river.

"Tsukiko!" Akio was suddenly shouting in her ear to be heard over the roar of the water. "Sasuke's alright. He's gone after Gaara!"

"Good," She managed, panting under the strain. "Sasuke won't let him get away."

"That's a shame," the Kazekage sighed. "We had intended to capture Sasuke while Gaara was causing trouble. But I suppose not everything goes as planned, does it?"

Tsukiko's attention shifted back to the Kazekage the moment he'd mentioned her younger brother. ' _So he is working with Orochimaru!'_ She cursed.

"I see." The Hokage glared at his Sand counterpart. "So that was the plan. Then, the Hidden Leaf Village and Sasuke were your targets. Is that correct?"

"Ha! Do you really believe that the Leaf Village is so important?" The Kazekage scoffed. "Now, if Gaara returns, I'll be able to show you something very interesting. But anyway, your stubbornness and incompetence have allowed me to outmaneuver you. I've defeated the great Third Hokage."

"Hmph. Nothing is decided until the very end. I taught you that years ago, didn't I?"

Tsukiko's head snapped around, and her control over the water wavered. "What?!"

Then the "Kazekage" reached up, and ripped off his face, revealing white skin and dark gold reptilian eyes.

Absolute fury and fear welled up inside the young woman at the sight of the face she'd been cursing for the past month, searching for any sign of. And yet, he'd been sitting next to her, within killing distance, all along.

' _Orochimaru.'_

* * *

A.N. Whew! That was a long ride! Recap time!

So, from the flashbacks we learned that Tsukiko is being shunned and low-key threatened by the Uchiha clan, and feels more alone than ever, especially now that she's separated from Itachi at night. We also learned that Danzo has very specific plans for her future.

In the present, we had Chiyo beat Midori. The point of this fight was to show how Midori thinks, using the strategies of those before her to almost win, and also to show how Chiyo would have dealt with Gaara's Ultimate Defense. So, yes, their fight and the Sasuke vs. Gaara fight had several similarities to highlight that.

Also, Orochimaru! Poor Tsukiko needs to trust her instincts more. Oh, and I hope you enjoyed that little glimpse she had of what could've been. My sister yelled at me for that one. *insert evil grin*

So, anyway, it will NOT be another four weeks until the next chapter. I'll try to get a better schedule going and try for every two weeks.

P.S. All the praise for Gaara's voice actor, Liam O'Brien. Jesus H. Christ, that scream he did when Gaara got hurt is horrifying! RIP his vocal cords!


	19. Chapter 17

A.N. _THEN: So, this may come as a surprise, but I'm not dead! Yay! I apologize that I haven't posted anything in a month, but thank you all for being so incredibly patient. So, anyway, it will NOT be another four weeks until the next chapter. I'll try to get a better schedule going and try for every two weeks._

NOW: 6 weeks later: …...yeah...that didn't happen….

* _Hides behind Masuko*_

Soooo, I was just very busy with midterms and the upcoming holidays, but that also meant that I wasn't paying attention to exactly how much I was writing. The answer is, a lot. This is a long battle, and actually a really cool one, now that I got to rewatch it. I'm usually more focused on Gaara, so I don't think I realized how emotional this was for Lord Third, and how impressive it is when you think about who he was fighting. It was annoying that it was continuously broken up, as I had to fast forward a lot of other stuff to get maybe fifteen seconds of dialogue. I just ended up watching all the episodes again, and it was fun.

The point is, though, that I wrote enough to post another chapter very soon. I'm thinking next Friday. And now that I've finished the Hokage fight...let's just say I have a fire lit under me for the upcoming chapters. There's a certain reunion in the near future...

This was honestly my favorite section to write so far, and I wanted to get it out in a reasonable time, but life is life. Thanks to everyone for being understanding.

Please enjoy! And please review!

* * *

"It's not enough!" Akio shouted, and Tsukiko could practically see the anger surrounding him. He'd always been expressive for an Anbu, his blue eyes flashing from behind the cat mask he wore, and it wasn't hard to read him when he lost his brisk professionalism.

As soon as Orochimaru had made his appearance,Tsukiko had thrown caution to the wind and increased the water flow to a near dangerous amount, her sphere lording over their heads like a small moon. By now it was about the two-thirds the size of the barrier.

Akio was insisting that it wasn't enough water, but Tsukiko didn't have a choice. She'd sacrificed size for speed, and if she didn't drop it now, she wouldn't have enough chakra to create enough Lightning.

Plus, Orochimaru and the Hokage were now facing each other, the snake-like man having released him after ensuring the old man was trapped. Tsukiko couldn't hear their conversation, but she wanted to help the Third Hokage well before the fight started.

"It's possible that this barrier can only be broken from the inside," Akio continued. "So we can't waste our best chance! If this doesn't work, we'll have to wait for Lord Third to take out one of those Sound ninja."

He had a point, which was made more convincing a few seconds later, with the creation of a second barrier, separating the four Sound shinobi from the Hokage and protecting them from any attack on the inside. Her attack was the best chance they had, as the Hokage would have his hands full dealing with his former student.

Less than a minute later, the two trapped men were fighting hard, Lord Third using the tiles as shuriken, while Orochimaru's tongue became a snake that bit into the old man's neck.

But it was only a mud clone, and the Third Hokage appeared behind Orochimaru, turning the ground beneath his feet to mud.

"It has to be now!" Tsukiko gasped, her limbs heavy and shaking. "I can't hold it any longer!"

"Lord Third is combining Fire and Earth styles!" One of the Anbu announced, watching their leader use his Dragon Bomb Jutsu, before adding fire to the muddy projectiles. "Orochimaru is distracted!"

"Get back!" Akio ordered sharply. "Unless you want to be electrocuted!"

The three Anbu leapt off the roof as Tsukiko gritted her teeth, taking a shaky step forward.

"Haaaah!" With a shout of exertion, the young woman raised her arms and leaned back, the water following her movement. Then, she snapped her torso forward, throwing the water at the barrier.

The colossal wave crashed into the purple wall with enough force to shake the whole building. Tsukiko, without pausing to see what damage she'd caused, immediately switched to Lightning, reaching deep inside herself to feel her chakra.

Over the course of the last month, she'd been building up her Lightning chakra, clashing the energies together to practice creating electricity. By now, it was a simple matter to summon.

The air around her prickled momentarily, and then Lightning was crackling up and down her arms, the smell of a storm filling the air. She focused the energy to her hands, and slammed both palms against the barrier, just as the wave doused the heated wall.

For a moment, the entire roof lit up in a bright white light, streaks of blue energy arching wildly around the cube containing the fighters. Even the fighting around the village paused for a brief moment, all eyes turning to the momentary beacon. Then, it was quiet, the hissing noise of steam the only thing to be heard.

Tsukiko stumbled back, her breathing harsh and strained. Her hands were burnt, but she was otherwise unharmed. As was the barrier.

"Damn!" The boy with six hands grinned. "For a second, I was worried that—"

He cut off sharply as a sound like glass breaking echoed in the still space, and a crack appeared in the wall, where Tsukiko had directed the majority of her blow. It was small, about the length of one of her arms, but it quickly splintered, creating a spiderweb that seemed like it could shatter at any moment.

"Fix it!" The red-haired girl cried.

"We can't!" The boy with two heads snapped. "Not without taking down the barrier and redoing it!"

"It's fine," Spider boy called out, smirking. "It'll hold. They can't touch it without it burning them, and that woman doesn't look like she can give a repeat performance!"

Mollified, the ninja focused on keeping the barrier intact, preventing the cracks from spreading any further.

Inside, Orochimaru shook his head as he took in the damage to what should have been an impenetrable wall. "I don't often make mistakes," he said casually. "But I'll admit, I underestimated those eyes of hers. Impervious to Genjutsu, and despite the split in chakra, she's stronger than most. I should've taken them when I had the chance and done some experiments to see their limits."

The Third Hokage glared. "You had no chance. I saw to it that she was protected from the likes of you, and young Sasuke is the same. You'll get nothing from the Leaf Village!"

He pulled off his hat and robe, revealing a black ninja outfit with metal plating on the shoulders, mesh armor at the wrists and ankles, and a leather arm guard that covered his right arm from the elbow down. On his head, he wore a samurai-styled helmet, the metal Leaf Village forehead protector shining proudly in the center.

"Did you foresee this, dying this way?" Orochimaru mocked, removing his own set of weighty Kage robes. Underneath was his previous outfit from when he'd disguised himself as a Grass ninja, a black and off-white robe with a purple rope-like belt.

Tsukiko watched this exchange blankly, feeling light-headed and dizzy. She had used too much chakra.

"Tsukiko!" Hands grabbed her shoulders, keeping her upright as she swayed.

"It...didn't work…" she muttered, her vision blurring slightly.

"Hang on!" Akio let her lean against him as he pulled her to her feet. "I'll get you to a medic!"

She let him pull her along for a few feet, then stopped when his words sank in. "No!" She protested, yanking herself out of his hold. "Get your men back here, and have them transfer as much chakra as they can to me. We have to break that barrier!"

"But you're practically dead on your feet," he countered, not making a move to help her stand.

"I won't be if you and the other Anbu shinobi give me your chakra," she insisted, faltering slightly at the immense pressure she felt from the growing powers within the barrier. "They're about to fight in earnest, and we need to get in there! Lord Hokage can handle Orochimaru, but it'll be a tough fight, and the instant he goes down, those subordinates of his will attack Lord Third while he's weakened. We cannot allow that to happen!"

Akio hesitated, and she could feel him sizing her up. He knew she wasn't the type to rush in without thinking, and her reasoning was solid. And, he realized, without her, there was little chance they'd be able to pierce through the crack she made in the enemy's defenses. It required precise chakra control to build up enough pressure to force their way inside. And he knew from experience that that was Tsukiko's specialty.

The young woman gathered herself as she watched the gears turn in the Anbu captain's mind. The fact that her stubborn friend was even considering it showed how desperate their situation was.

The roof shook as behind them, Orochimaru's voice rang out. "Summoning Jutsu: Reanimation!"

Tsukiko's head whipped around, white hair fanning out. _That can't be good!'_

She turned in time to see a second wooden coffin rising from the ground to join its twin, which had appeared while her back was turned.

' _What are those?'_

Another coffin began to rise, but Lord Third managed to halt its course with a volley of shuriken, and it slowly sank out of sight.

The young woman stumbled back to the barrier, straining to see clearly through the purple haze. Behind her, Akio was recalling his team, desperate to break through before Orochimaru released whatever was inside those coffins.

But it was too late. With a loud creak, the lids began to fall away. They made a heavy thud as they slammed into the roof, and dust rose in a cloud, obscuring what was inside.

"It can't be!" Tsukiko's eyes widened as she caught a glimpse of the two figures. "That's impossible!"

Akio landed next to her, his voice startled. "Those two are—"

"What are you going to do now, Sarutobi-Sensei?" Orochimaru hissed, a crazed gleam in his eye. "What are you going to do, _Lord Third Hokage_?"

Slowly, almost as if controlled by puppet strings, the two figures moved out of their previous resting places.

The two men were handsome, and gave off auras of great power. The first had long black hair and a red armored shinobi uniform, and the other had short white hair with similar uniform in blue. Their dusty clothing did nothing to take away from the Leaf insignia on both of their foreheads. They were unmistakable.

' _Lords First and Second Hokage…'_

Tsukiko could do nothing but stare, shocked to see two of the faces she'd only known in drawings and stone come alive.

"It's been a very long time, Saru," Lord First said, his deep voice serious and slightly melancholic.

"Oh, it's you. You've gotten so old, Sarutobi."

The Second Hokage sounded more dismissive and faintly teasing, but it was hard to tell. Neither of their expressions changed, and they gave no sign of surprise that they were again among the living.

"Never in my entire life did I imagine I would have to face off against my brethren in this manner," Lord Third said angrily, his expression hard. "What a vile trick."

"This is horrible!" Akio took a step forward. "We're out of options. You win, Tsukiko!"

He placed his hand on her shoulder, chakra flowing into her, revitalizing her body and mind. "You two, hurry up!" He snapped at the other Anbu agents, both of which were frozen at the sight of the Hokages.

"Please prepare yourselves," the old man said, widening his stance. "First Lord Hokage, Second Lord Hokage."

Jarred into action, Tsukiko felt two more hands touch her shoulders, sending their chakra into her system.

One of the two, in a slightly timid voice, spoke up. "But even if we break through, what can we do against them?"

"That's right," Akio nodded, "Those two are considered the greatest shinobi our village has ever seen. I mean, they built the Hidden Leaf Village." His voice hardened. "But we will not stand around and do nothing! Give Tsukiko as much chakra as you can, but not so much that you won't be able to fight. Even if we can just manage to distract them long enough for Lord Third to win, our lives will be well spent."

Tsukiko closed her eyes, digging deep into her reserves. Taking a leaf out of Masuko's book, she had built up chakra in case of an emergency, and this was one if ever there was.

Dimly, she could still hear what was happening.

"A Summoning Jutsu," Lord Second observed.

"It seems that he used the forbidden Reanimation Technique," the First Hokage confirmed.

Lord Second glanced back as the coffins fell away. "How insolent."

Looking at his former student, Lord First showed no emotion. "Then, Sarutobi, tell me, does this Summoning jutsu mean we're being forced to battle against you?"

"Enough with the reminiscing," Orochimaru ordered, stepping forward. "It's time that we got started."

"Whenever you live, there's always war," the First Hokage said a slightly mournful note in his voice.

"Isn't it great?" Orochimaru smirked.

"Nothing good can ever come of this!" Lord Third shouted warningly. "You've disrespected the dead and manipulated time!"

Orochimaru said nothing, but held up two kunai with red tags attached. "First, let me restore these dear old companions of yours to something more like their former selves. And then, if you're ready, Sarutobi-Sensei…" He trailed off, smiling mysteriously.

The kunai made a sickening sound as they sank into the skulls of the reanimated men. There was no wound, their flesh closing over the weapons, leaving the tags firmly embedded in the heads of the previous Hokages.

Their bodies began to steam, and color returned to their faces. The cracks in their skin and dust on their clothing seemed to fade away as both men stood up straighter, light and awareness glowing in formerly dull eyes.

"They're coming alive!" The timid-sounding Anbu spoke, his hand shaking slightly. "What the devil kind of jutsu is that?!"

Tsukiko felt the tremors and opened her eyes, catching sight of the renewed Hokages.

"A forbidden one," Akio answered grimly. "A Summoning jutsu called 'Reanimation.'" He shook his head in disgust. "Normally, a Summoning requires the blood of the one casting it."

"But?" Tsukiko prompted, a shiver going down her spine.

"I've heard that this jutsu, which summons the dead to the world of the living, demands the sacrifice of a living body to be used as a vessel for the dead soul."

The hairs at the back of her neck stood up, and her fists clenched. Akio was a master information-gatherer, so she had no reason to disbelieve him. Quite the opposite, in fact. But just the thought of such a jutsu was terrifying in possibility.

"Then those are not their bodies, but two living sacrifices?" The other Anbu, silent until this point, spoke in a deep voice, rough with disuse.

"Right," Akio nodded, his grip tightening. "But then the living body is encased in a shell of dust and earth that takes on the appearance of the dead spirit's earthly form. Those spells Orochimaru implanted just now will sap the spirits of their will, and transform them into his puppets, mere killing machines."

Orochimaru chuckled darkly. "Now they're complete."

Lord Hokage's face filled with horror at the sight of his mentors being fully restored, his hand coming up to cover his eyes. "You demon," he growled, head lowered in sorrow as his eyes filled with tears. "They look just the same as I remember."

"Have you ever felt the joy of humiliating and destroying the one you once called sensei?" The snake-like man asked sardonically. He paused. "No, I suppose not. Perhaps vicariously through me you'll get a hint of what I mean." He made a hand sign. "Just a taste before you die."

The Reanimations moved slowly forward, backs slightly hunched, arms hanging limply by their sides. They took several steps forward, Lord First walking along the edge of his coffin lid, before stopping again.

Then, in unison, the two darted forward.

Lord First came from the front while the Second Hokage changed direction and came across the rooftop from above, hoping to catch Lord Third in a pincer attack.

The old man stared at them blankly, shoulders slightly shaking.

"Lord Hokage!" Akio shouted, pulling his hand away from Tsukiko's shoulder. He stumbled slightly, having given more chakra than he'd intended, but did his best to force the older man into action. "Don't be deceived by their appearances! That is not the First Hokage, not the Second, whatever they may look like!"

The Third Hokage dodged the shuriken that came from above, then moved to block the blows of the dark-haired Reanimation. "I'm aware of that!" He shouted angrily, his voice raw with emotion.

"That's enough!" Tsukiko shrugged off the other two hands, cracking her neck. "You'll only put yourselves in danger if you give me anymore." Coolly, she eyed the cracks in the barrier. She'd acted with emotion before, and had nearly wasted their chance. Now was the time to recall her years of training and find a logical solution.

' _What would Itachi do?'_ The thought came unbidden, but actually calmed her down. He'd always been the more level-headed of the two, and often countered her emotional side with facts.

 _I can use up the majority of my chakra on this barrier, or…'_

A sudden idea occurred to her, and her eyes turned green, her finger inclining slightly.

The piece of stone tile she'd been focused on moved slightly, but not enough to give away her plan.

' _I can wait for an opportunity to help Lord Third directly.'_

The man in question was now grappling with the Second Hokage, who was swung around by his foot and thrown back to land lightly by his brother.

"Alright! Let it begin!" The angry Hokage made a series of signs and leaned back as his chest expanded. "Dragon Flame Bomb!"

An enormous spray of golden fire erupted from his mouth, traveling over thirty feet to slam into the two Reanimations. It continued, without pause, for several seconds, smoke filling the enclosed space.

"Water Style: Water Wall!" The Second Hokage's voice rang out, and a blue wave suddenly rose to overtake the fire in a cloud of hot steam. Through it, the unwilling watchers saw the spray coming from Lord Second's mouth.

"Amazing," the timid ninja exclaimed. "To cast so powerful a Water Style jutsu where there is no water! It's beyond belief!"

Tsukiko nodded slowly, her eyes wide.

The water quickly evaporated, leaving the two Reanimations unharmed while the roof burned in several places, the flames continuing to crackle.

"It's no less than I'd expect from a former Hokage," Orochimaru said smugly, his arms crossed.

Lord Second pressed his palms flat against themselves. "Water Style: Water Shock Wave!"

A tornado of water exploded from his position, threatening to overtake the whole roof.

Lord Hokage moved, silently making signs to create his jutsu nonverbally. "Haaah!" With a great shout, a mud wall erupted from the tiles and protected him just as the wave hit. But there was too much water, and it threatened to circle around and crush him against his own barrier.

' _Now!'_

Tsukiko's eyes turned blue, and her arms shot out.

The cascade of water suddenly froze in its place, giving Lord Third enough time to create a second wall underneath him that propelled him up out of harm's way, before she let the wave drop, covering the section of curved roof with several feet of water.

"Tsukiko?!" Akio's surprised exclamation brought a grin of satisfaction to her face.

"Thought so." She turned her attention to the snake. "Akio, am I correct in thinking that, if the one who cast the jutsu is killed, the Reanimations won't just disappear?"

She felt him hesitate. "I'm not sure. But I doubt we could force him to release the jutsu."

"We'll see about that."

From inside the barrier, golden eyes regarded her with amusement, daring her to attack. Orochimaru remained standing on the dry rooftop, the water curving around in a bubble as if it refused to touch him. But he wouldn't be able to just stand there for long, not if she had anything to say about it.

Meanwhile, the First Hokage shot forward, running on the water towards his target. Lord Third jumped off the wall and shot fire balls at him, which the older man deflected.

He leapt up and kicked at the Third Hokage, who barely managed to block before his opponent's other foot splashed water in his face.

"Ah!" Momentarily blinded, Lord Third was hit with a series of kicks and punches, knocking him back several feet, where he landed face-down.

Tsukiko winced, her eyes following the movement. At the same instant, her hand whipped to the side in a cutting motion, hoping to catch Orochimaru off-guard while he thought she was distracted.

Icicles shot at his unprotected back emerging from the wall of water behind him. At the last second, Orochimaru sensed them coming and just barely dodged, the end of one tearing a small hole in the side of his clothing as he leapt upwards, landing lightly on the water.

His smug expression never changed as he dodged her icy missiles, but Tsukiko was actually at an advantage, the stupid snake's own barrier protecting her from a counterattack.

Several feet away, the old man got to his feet with a loud groan. "As quick and strong as ever, I see." His voice was laced with pain.

Tsukiko saw the water bubbling behind him a second before the Hokage did. Sending a final barrage of icy projectiles at Orochimaru, she pivoted on one heel and slammed her hands down, the water forcing the Second Hokage back underneath just as he sprang up to catch Lord Third in a choke hold.

Instead, all he got was a face-full of water as the Hokage leapt away, quickly climbing the face of his rock wall with a speed and agility that belied his age.

Jets of water suddenly burst out and tore at the rock, forcing the old man to drop back to the ground as the top of the wall crumbled and fell.

' _Damn!'_

Knowing it was too much water for her to control that precisely, and too much of a danger to her leader, Tsukiko knew she had to act quickly. Her eyes flashed green.

"This is going to be difficult," she muttered, widening her stance. She slammed her foot into the roof and lifted her hands, tearing out a large chunk of tiles.

Wiping sweat out of her face, Tsukiko forced the tiles together, fusing the stone into a massive cannon ball that she held in the air with one hand. Holding up the other, she took several deep breaths, blue slowly bleeding into her right eye.

She directed as much water as she could control to the inner barrier, forcing it up into a powerful wave. The pressure continued to build as she forced it higher and higher, until it was almost touching the ceiling.

Instinct told her when the water was at its limit, the moment when it would cause the most damage.

"Haaah!" With a loud cry, Tsukiko slammed her hands together, the impact of burned flesh against flesh sending a shock of pain down her spine.

Several things happened at that moment. The first was the massive tree roots that shot out of the roof, heralded by the sound of breaking tiles. The First Hokage let out a roar of exertion as he used his famous hidden jutsu: Woodstyle. "Secret Earth Jutsu," he called out. "Deep Forest Creation!"

The second thing was that a large section of roots sprouted in front of the wave, taking most of the impact. The growing tree snapped in half under the pressure, and fell against the barrier, catching fire instantly while the water cleared away.

The third and final thing was that the tile cannonball slammed right into the series of spiderweb cracks Tsukiko had already made. It got stuck halfway through, and was melted away by the heat of the purple wall, leaving a hole about the size of a serving platter.

"Damn!" The spider-boy shouted, turning to the hole. He shot a golden fluid out of his mouth, which hit the hole and hardened, patching it momentarily. At least, until the flames of the barrier began to eat away at the strange substance, forcing the boy to reapply it every few seconds, thereby distracting him.

Tsukiko should've taken immediate advantage of the situation. But she too was distracted by the literal forest sprouting inside the purple haze. Her heart sank as she realized the distance between herself and someone who'd been named Hokage. In sheer raw power, she was absolutely no match. They needed to rethink their strategy.

She lost sight of Lord Third as he was shot up into the air by a tree trunk, the enormous plants breaking through stone and tile to stretch as high as the purple ceiling. It was fast, too, the forest forming in a matter of seconds

"He uses his chakra as a life source," Akio explained in awe, answering Tsukiko's unspoken question.

"So this is the legendary Woodstyle jutsu of the First Hokage," the gruff-voiced Anbu said. "He who brought peace to the land and founded the Hidden Leaf Village."

"There!" Tsukiko pointed up at one of the thicker trees, having spotted the Third Hokage trapped within its branches.

Orochimaru, forgotten in the last few minutes, stepped forward now. "Looks to me that this fight is over," he said smugly. "Eh, sensei?"

Lord Third stretched out a hand, straining to touch to bark of the branch just in front of him. The branch across his chest and shoulders prevented this.

Tsukiko's eyes turned gold, and she tried to move unobtrusively to avoid detection. Her hand made a sharp slashing motion, her eyes locked on the branch in question.

The Hokage felt an unnatural burst of wind pass him, and then the pressure on his shoulder lessened as the limb pinning him fell away.

' _Tsukiko,'_ he thought, feeling genuine warmth for the young woman who'd been trying her hardest to help him. She was kind, capable, and fiercely loyal, all qualities he himself treasured in a person and in a Konoha ninja. But Tsukiko was also his responsibility to protect, and if he didn't end this soon, his former student, another responsibility of his, would steal the last of her family.

' _I've been a poor excuse for a Hokage,'_ he thought grimly. ' _After Minato died, I thought I could lead everyone to the best solution. In the end, my arrogance undid all the good I'd tried to do. The Uchiha and Amaya are all but wiped out, and I'd been too blind to see their pain. Young Tsukiko and Sasuke are all that's left, and still they fight to protect me and the village, not knowing the truth. Not knowing of my greatest failure._

As the one who had a hand in the destruction of her family in the first place, he couldn't allow Tsukiko to suffer the loss of any more family. Not while he was still breathing.

"Ninja Art: Summoning Jutsu!" He cried, gasping at the strain on his already weakened chakra. "Monkey King Enma!"

A huge explosion of smoke obscured the view, and Tsukiko noticed for the first time that Orochimaru's grin had faded away, replaced by a considering frown. "Hm. So, a pesky newcomer has arrived." He sighed. "That old monkey, Enma."

The "old monkey" was actually quite large, nearly as tall as a person when he stood up straight. He wore a tiger-striped tunic and black shorts over mesh armor, and had long silver fur that masqueraded as long hair and a beard with sideburns. Behind him, a long white tail curled aggressively as he looked around.

Enma crawled forward, his eyes widening at the sight of Orochimaru. "It's you again," he growled. "I should have known this would happen." He turned scathing eyes to the Hokage. "You fool, Sarutobi! You should have killed him when you had the chance."

"Better late than never," Lord Third said grimly.

"Heh," the monkey smiled mockingly. "It's too late now." He gestured to the Hokage's trapped state.

Groaning, the old man leaned forward, struggling to free himself. "Quickly!" He shouted. "Enma! Adamantine Nyoi!"

"Stop him now!" For the first time, a flash of fear appeared on Orochimaru's face, as he pointed to Enma. "Do not let him transform!"

Obediently, the First and Second Hokages immediately began running and jumping up the trees at an alarmingly fast pace, their blank sights fixed on their target.

"Alright then!" Enma took a step back, his dark wrinkled face frowning with concentration. "Understood!"

As the Second Hokage reached him, the monkey slammed his fist into his opponent's spiky white hair, hitting with enough force to send him crashing _through_ the branch.

Enma turned, and in one movement, blocked the First Hokage's fist and kicked him up into the air. Landing lightly on a broken stump, the monkey shouted "Transform!" and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Less than a second later, a thick pole about seven or eight feet long slammed into the branches holding the Third Hokage captive. Twice more, moving with a mind of its own, the pole smashed the wood with ease.

"At last!" Lord Third jumped up, finally freed, and caught the spinning pole in midair. He landed deftly, turning to face the two Reanimations as they recovered.

"Unbelievable," Akio's voice, unusually reverent, spoke softly from Tsukiko's right. "I never dreamed I would live to see Hokage-level combat."

She shook herself, angry that she'd been caught up in watching rather than helping. "We have two options," she said quietly, her eyes finding Orochimaru. "I can get rid of that weird gold seal and take out one of the Sound ninja, or I can continue to distract Orochimaru and give Lord Third a chance to end it." Her initial rush to break the barrier had been tempered by the potential danger to the village the two Reanimations represented. There was a rather large crowd of unconscious people below them that wouldn't be able to defend themselves from this level of attack. The barrier now acted as a shield for Konoha just as much as it was a trap.

"Good for you, old man," Orochimaru said mockingly, his casual demeanor returned. "At least you've made this a little more interesting." He pressed against his stomach, face contorting grotesquely as he opened his mouth. A live snake emerged from his throat, opening its own mouth to reveal the hilt of a sword.

The snake-like man caught the blade as it emerged fully, holding it up as he swallowed the scaled creature hanging out of his mouth

"Are you ready, Enma?" Lord Third asked, knowing that the weapon Orochimaru wielded was no ordinary blade.

"No matter how strong my body is, the Grass Longsword will still hurt me," his pole warned, the disembodied voice of the monkey king echoing.

Lord Third nodded in acknowledgment, then leapt forward, spinning the weapon to build up centrifugal force. Once he was over Orochimaru, Enma extended rapidly, trying to catch the dark-haired man off-guard.

Orochimaru backflipped to dodge the strike, and the Hokage landed next to him, keeping the momentum of his spinning pole going. The two traded a series of blows, Lord Third's weapon keeping Orochimaru at bay.

Akio shook his head in frustration. "It's risky either way. Now that Orochimaru has Lords First and Second on his side, it might be even more dangerous to break the barrier. That level of fighting might destroy the village."

"But we can't simply sit here and do nothing," Tsukiko finished, tensing as the first two Hokages rejoined the fight, knocking the pole away just as Lord Third had Orochimaru pinned.

Weaponless, the old man wasn't fast enough to dodge as Orochimaru shot forward, sword forgotten in favor of a series of punches and kicks to the face and body, his white face alight with a sick satisfaction. Lord Third fell heavily to the ground with a dull thud.

"Lord Hokage!" The timid Anbu ninja clenched his fists.

"That was foolish," Orochimaru mocked. "Trying to fight the three of us without using your Shadow Clone jutsu."

"No, that's wrong," Akio muttered, leaning closer to see clearly through the purple wall. "It's that he _couldn't_ use it. To disperse his chakra among a pack of clones, and then create more when those have fallen...those things are beyond him now. He doesn't have the chakra reserves he once had, and fighting all three of them has pushed him to the brink."

"Akio," Tsukiko cracked her neck, gathering her last bits of chakra. "You and the others give me everything you have. Even if we do break through, none of us are strong enough to do anything more than get in the way." It was a hard thing to admit, a heavy blow to her pride, and the strength she'd been so proud of. There was an immense gap between her and the fighters trapped inside the barrier, and she could feel frustration clawing up her insides at her lack of power.

' _I've been standing still for far too long.'_ Being content with her current power was no longer an option. Orochimaru could give Sasuke far more than she could, and she had no doubts about whether he would go or not. It's what she would do, in his place.

There. There it was. The admission that she'd been trying to deny ever since Orochimaru had given Sasuke that damned curse mark.

After Itachi had...left, Tsukiko didn't cry. She'd been unable to, all of her emotions collapsed within themselves in shock. Even when Sasuke had cried, clinging to her tightly in the hospital, Tsukiko was unable to express anything other than relief that he was alright. She had held him tightly, thanking whatever deity that had taken pity on her. It was only at the funeral for her adopted clan that a new emotion emerged.

Rage.

Such a raw, ugly feeling. It burned and clawed and roared, threatening to destroy her if not acted upon, but Tsukiko had welcomed it. The anger had meant that she was still alive, that there was still something left to live for.

Not her dreams. Not her goals. What childish nonsense they'd been! How could she bring about world peace if she couldn't even see the darkness hidden away in those closest to her? How could she hope to start a family of her own someday if—?

For a few weeks, Tsukiko was in a very dark place, and had thrown herself into a vicious training program, trying to strengthen herself to go after him, to avenge the aching pain in her heart and head. Everything in the village had been a reminder of the family she'd lost, of the hatred she felt for the man she had once loved. There was no room for love, not anymore.

But, there was Sasuke. He'd needed her, been the reason she could force a smile on her face and pretend that everything was going to be alright.

He'd seen through her, of course, and began to push himself just as she was, revenge his prominent motivation after the awful challenge Itachi had issued, after seeing the horrible wound that ought to have killed Tsukiko. But he played along, acting like everything was fine.

That had been Tsukiko's wake up call. She'd come home early from their new house, on the opposite side of the village from the now-sealed compound, and had seen Sasuke's training. He'd attacked and destroyed the surrounding forest with a deep anger and vengeance belonging to someone far older than his nine years would allow. And, for a long moment, Tsukiko hadn't recognized him, his face twisted with rage.

She'd withdrawn, back to her training grounds, and looked around with new eyes. Deep gouges in the earth like scars, and trees destroyed as if in a violent frenzy. Was this who she was? The person she wanted to be?

That was when she finally broke down, her emotions exploding out of her with a sudden surge that left her screaming and sobbing on the ground, wishing and praying for forgiveness, for the past to be rewritten. She couldn't mask her feelings behind hate anymore. She loved Itachi. Lie or not, her memories of him were precious, and didn't deserve to be tainted by hate. _Sasuke_ didn't deserve to be tainted by her hate. He was all she had left.

The anger left, leaving her raw and broken. She needed to pull herself together, to stop punishing herself for still loving the man who killed her family, to forgive herself for not seeing the darkness grow in Itachi.

It was only then did she realize that her outburst of emotion had manifested physically, lighting dancing around her, charged with positive and negative energy and feelings. Her Gensogan had evolved, just as Itachi's Sharingan had.

She'd been able to rebuild after that. To see past the hurt and confusion and look to the future. Her life with Sasuke settled down, the two of them almost happy at times. It was hard, but they were making progress. Sasuke hadn't let go of his rage, still trapped in that dark world of an avenger. And because she'd experienced it, Tsukiko knew the truth. He would leave without looking back if it meant he could finally quell the anger that was slowly eating him alive. He wouldn't hesitate.

Akio studied the dark look on her face, recognizing it. His sister often wore that expression when she was lost in her thoughts. It was not a comforting sign. "Tsukiko?"

"I need to beat him," she muttered, eyes locked on Orochimaru as he approached the prone Hokage. "I need to protect Sasuke."

"And how will you do that?"

She glanced at him as if surprised to see him talking to her. "What?"

"You said you wanted us to give you the rest of our chakra. I agree that we wouldn't be able to do much even if they broke through, but I assume you have a plan?"

Tsukiko shook herself, the shadow across her features disappearing. "I'm not strong enough to do much more," she said, her tone matter-of-fact. "But I think I can distract Lords First and Second long enough for the Third Hokage to beat Orochimaru."

Akio nodded, trusting her. "Alright, let's go."

* * *

Masuko slammed her armored fist into the Sound ninja's nose, hearing a satisfying crunch as he flew back.

"Alright, who's next?" She growled, glaring at the attacking Sound ninja through the blue tint protecting her eyes.

Masuko's chakra armor was similar in look to that of a samurai, taking the form of the helmet and protective padding across her arms and legs. But this was completely covering her body, the chakra thinner in some places (like the bottoms of her feet) to lower the weight and allow her to concentrate it in areas where she'd most likely be hurt. Unlike a normal chakra-driven defense, this was solid, tangible energy. Masuko spent most of her off-time carefully storing a steady stream of chakra into her reserves, a section of her mind that she had specifically blocked off with her family's technique.

It was a seal of sorts, but left no physical mark on her skin. All it did was ensure that her chakra reserves could only be tapped into if she willed it. There would be no stealing this chakra, which guaranteed her against that sort of jutsu or attack. The moment it became armor, however, was a different story. Any opponent capable of absorbing chakra often targeted her. But the hardened energy resisted turning back to its original form, which made it quite difficult to actually take. In Masuko's experience, there was only one weapon capable of ripping her chakra away with ease. And it wasn't here.

The next ninja approached, more cautiously than his friend. They were trying to get to the lords and merchants currently under Masuko's guard, and it wasn't clear whether assassination or kidnapping was their game. But it didn't matter. They weren't going to make it past her.

Masuko grinned at the irony, flexing her fingers. A year ago, and she'd have been in their place, trying to kill the same people she was now protecting. Funny how life worked out.

Shuriken and kunai flew, aimed at her less guarded areas. Masuko brushed them aside contemptuously, her armor gaining a shimmering quality.

The ninja stumbled back a step, and Masuko's fang glinted evilly. She'd found, several years ago, that adding a second layer of chakra, extremely thin and meant to catch the light, made her difficult to see. It was like trying to look through a prism, and although her bulky figure was an obvious standout, she was hidden, to an extent. In plain terms, the refraction of light made it very difficult for others to see her hand signs or keep track of fast or subtle movements. The direction of a blade, for example.

The Sound ninja fell, clutching his side. Masuko pulled her sword free of the body, grimacing at it. The damn thing was already eroding under the force of her chakra. It wasn't meant to work with the level of energy she possessed. Very few blades were.

Again, she cursed the Mist for snapping her father's katana, one of few weapons that actually felt right in her hands.

She sighed as she kicked the body of the ninja at his former comrades, using their confusion to get behind them and cut them all down in a matter of seconds.

"Looks like I'm going to have to visit old man Tatsume," she griped, watching her blade disintegrate.

As the next set of foes approached, Masuko spared a glance at the giant purple box on the roof of the nearby building. She was not a sensory type, by any means, but even she could feel the clashing chakras inside that thing, and it seemed pretty intense.

"Hope the old man's okay," she muttered, slamming her knee into the stomach of the closest opponent. "I do owe him one, after all."

* * *

A.N. Aaaaaand that's if for this chapter. A little shorter than usual, but evenly split with the fight. Next time, we'll see the conclusion and the hints to the future.

I've introduced some new characters here, which will come back later, and I got to show off Tsukiko's moves a little. She's stronger than she thinks, but hasn't trained enough. She feels limited by her chakra, when that's not her real problem.

No flashbacks here or likely in the next two chapters. They interrupted the flow of the story, and lord knows the Hokage fight didn't need any more of that. So I'm saving them for later. *Grins evilly.*

Anyway, I promise that the next chapter will be out by Friday, and the following chapter soon after that. Happy Halloween, everyone!


	20. Chapter 18

A.N. Yay! I kept my promise! It's 10:40 p.m. as I'm writing this, but still technically Friday.

Thank you to everyone who reviewed, followed, and liked this story. I'm very excited to be at this point, and I think you guys will be too.

So, without further ado, the conclusion to the Orochimaru vs. Lord Third battle!

WARNING: OROCHIMARU IS CREEPY, AND I WROTE SOME OF HIS SCENES A BIT LIKE A HORROR NOVEL. FAIR WARNING.

* * *

"Wh—What's going on?!"

Tsukiko stared, eyes wide at the sight before her.

Orochimaru had gained the upper hand in the fight, throwing Lord Third to the ground and gloating about his imminent victory. But the Hokage activated the paper bombs he'd placed on the legs of the Reanimations, momentarily dispatching them for enough time for him to gain the distance he needed to recover. The old man had taken an unfamiliar stance, and Tsukiko had instinctively known that that was her moment to attack, to immobilize the Reanimations in any way she could.

But then...Orochimaru had pulled his face off, far gentler than he'd been with the Kazekage's, and revealed the features of a young woman.

"What the hell's going on?!" The timid Anbu asked, jerking back. "Who, or what is that?!"

Tsukiko took in the new face of the enemy, searching for any resemblance to the snake-like man. The woman was young, a couple years younger than her, if she had to guess, and was beautiful in a delicate sort of way. Those golden eyes though, with their reptilian hunger, hadn't changed.

"What is this?!" Lord Third demanded. "Who the devil are you?!"

"You have lost it, old man," the girl spoke, her voice obviously much higher...but containing that same hissing softness as the man she'd masqueraded as. "Don't you recognize me? It's me, Orochimaru."

With a start, Tsukiko realized it was higher, but very similar to the voice Orochimaru had used during the Chunin Exams when he'd disguised himself as a Grass ninja. Clearly, he, or she, traded voices and appearances with relative ease. They had no way of knowing whether or not this was even his real face, or merely another act.

"It can't be!" Lord Third shook his head. "Then you've mastered even that forbidden jutsu?!"

Tsukiko stepped as close as she could to the barrier, eyes flicking back and forth between the two enemies. ' _What jutsu?'_

Frozen with a morbid fascination, she watched as Orochimaru smiled grotesquely, the muscles in his face stretched too far, as if used to a wider mouth than he currently possessed. His mirth began as a quiet giggle that raised the hairs on the back of Tsukiko's neck, then exploded into insane laughter as Lord Third continued.

"You're no longer human! You're a demon!"

"Lord Hokage, what are you talking about?" Tsukiko asked, fearful of the answer. What was so significant about Orochimaru taking on a woman's appearance?

Lord Third appeared not to hear her, a horrified expression on his face. Enma's disembodied voice echoed as an eye appeared on his staff. "So, he did it after all."

"This is why I could never choose you to be the Fourth Hokage," the old man continued. "Your mind and soul are twisted!"

Orochimaru seemed to regain control of himself, smiling contemptuously at his former teacher, lips curling. "The Immortality Jutsu, a technique for eternally recycling one's spirit on Earth. In a way, it's a kind of revival jutsu. You find a body, a young body, pour your spirit into it, and make it your own."

Horror-struck, Tsukiko looked at the young woman's features with new understanding. That had actually been someone, maybe a year or so younger than her, and Orochimaru had stolen her body so that he wouldn't age. Sickening. Horrifying. Wrong.

"I was using my old familiar form until now," he continued, giggling in the woman's voice. "Because I wanted our reunion to be a nice nostalgic one, Sensei." He paused smile widening at the disgust on Lord Third's face. "Growing old is a sad, empty thing. I only have to look at you to be reminded of that."

Orochimaru cocked his head slightly, as if studying his sensei, toying with him like a mouse caught in the hypnotic gaze of a serpent. "You will die here, old man, while I move on to another stronger body. But first, I really must thank you," he continued, his gaze sliding over to Tsukiko. "And all the Leaf Village, for preparing my next body so well."

Tsukiko jerked back as if slapped, her eyes widening with fear. ' _Sasuke…'_

The Third Hokage gasped as it clicked in his mind. "Now I understand," he said, voice filled with quiet fury. "It's Sasuke Uchiha."

"Exactly," Orochimaru smirked, his snake-like pupils elongating with glee. "You guessed it. It's Sasuke I want."

Akio glanced over at his friend to see that her breathing was uneven, and her fists clenched. He felt a faint worry that Tsukiko would forget the plan and use what remaining chakra she had to lash out in fury, but he knew better than that. Even furious, Tsukiko was still logical.

"So you've mastered a jutsu that preserves your soul forever in the bodies of others," Lord Third summed up, stalling slightly. The Fourth Hokage's jutsu needed a lot of chakra, and he needed time to build his depleting stores up. "How many bodies had it been already? How many faces?"

The snake paused, considering. "Two or three, perhaps. But I'll wait for Sasuke until he's ripened a bit. And then when he'd been raised and trained to my liking…" he trailed off, laughing.

Tsukiko's eyes began to change colors rapidly, a sign of her emotions running rampant. The air around her crackled dangerously, and the tiles at her feet split in half. "Over. My. Dead. Body."

"Tell me, which face would you prefer me to wear?" Orochimaru asked mockingly. "Perhaps it would be easier for you to look on a familiar face..." As he spoke, his voice deepened back to a familiar hissing, and his hand rose up to replace the too-pale skin that had been the original face of the enemy. "...as you die, cursing your brief, wasted life."

"You monster…" Akio whispered.

A brief flicker of movement alerted Tsukiko to the First Hokage's movements, and she acted instinctively, finally given a target to direct her rage.

She stomped hard on the tile, then swung her foot around in a pantomime of a kick. The tiled roof inside the barrier followed her action, individual pieces of orange stone flying toward the First Hokage, forcing him back.

Massive tree trunks shot out of the tile, but this wasn't what Tsukiko was trying to prevent. Quite the opposite. Now she had cover for her movements, the entire barrier filled with curved and knitted trees in the space of a few seconds. And the trees had a second benefit.

"Lord Hokage!" Akio shouted, their leader having been grazed by the sharp branches.

The Third Hokage was barely visible through the thick trunks, protected by a cage made from Enma's pole form. The old man was panting, his chakra very nearly gone.

Orochimaru chuckled, flanked by the Reanimated Hokages. "You really shouldn't lower your guard, Sensei. That's your problem. You've always been naive."

The old man's gaze seemed to be focused on something none of them could see, his voice wistful. "You're right. I was naive." His eyes were sad as he looked upon his former student, but hardened as he came to a decision. "Now I'll correct my mistake and bury you once and for all!"

He grabbed one of the bars and Enma disappeared with a puff of smoke, reappearing in Lord Third's hand as the pole. "It's time to end this!"

Orochimaru grinned, eyes alight with malice and excitement, like a predator smelling blood. "I'm afraid it's too late now." At his slight gesture, the two Reanimations leapt into the air.

Two things happened at once. The first was Lord Third taking a familiar stance, his voice ringing out clearly. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

The second was Tsukiko raising her arms before sharply crossing them.

As the two former Hokages started making their own hand signs, they found themselves frozen in midair, two trunks simultaneously darkening and exploding as the water within them was ripped away.

"No, Lord Third!" Akio shouted, stepping forward. "He's going to exhaust what little chakra he has left!"

Lords First and Second broke free of the ice, landing light before their target. Tsukiko's eyes narrowed, and cracked her neck. Whatever she had to do, neither of the Reanimations were going to touch Lord Third.

Orochimaru glanced back at her. "How annoying. But it won't matter. You've only shortened your life, Sensei. I think your impatience is getting the better of you."

Lord Third said nothing, and Tsukiko watched him closely. Whatever he was planning, he needed to do it soon.

Spurred on by the opening Tsukiko had created, Lord Third quickly performed a series of hand signs, the order unfamiliar to the young woman. He clapped his hands together...and nothing happened.

At least, nothing Tsukiko could see. But Lord Third looked over his shoulder with a grim satisfaction, so she knew that whatever he'd done had worked.

"Whatever you're planning, its too late," Orochimaru repeated. "It's over, I've won. The Leaf Village will fall!"

"You're forgetting that the Leaf Village is my home!" The old man declared. "And as Hokage, I am entrusted with my home's protection. I am head of the household, the central pillar! He who would destroy my home must first destroy me, and I warn you, it will not be easy."

Lord Second moved, too fast to counter. "Genjutsu: Infinite Darkness Jutsu!"

Darkness spread across the barrier, at least, momentarily for Tsukiko, whose flickering eyes showed her still rapidly switching chakra styles. She smiled, her teeth bared like fangs. They had just doomed themselves. Reanimations or not, they still relied on their senses. And Lord Second had just blinded not only Lord First, but Orochimaru as well. She had no doubt he had some way to counteract the darkness, but regardless, she still planned to make her move.

"What nonsense." Orochimaru's voice seemed to echo in the black emptiness around Lord Third. "In the grand scheme of time, you're just a trivial footnote in the brief history of a cluster of huts called the Leaf Village."

The old man put up his hands to block the blows he could feel coming, but they never landed. He could hear the sounds of multiple impacts just in front of his position, but nothing struck him.

Lord Third felt his hope flare once more. ' _Tsukiko!'_ The young woman was all but impervious to Genjutsu, and could see her enemies clearly. As Orochimaru's voice continued to echo, seemingly unaware of what was happening, the old man sent up a quick prayer. ' _Please, give me the time and strength to do this before Tsukiko can't hold them back any longer.'_

"In time, the Hokage Stone Faces will crumble and be worn down to nothing."

The old man laughed humorlessly. "You've never understood that it's far more than a mere cluster of huts. It is a place where every year, shinobi are born, raised, grow old, fight, and die to protect their home." He stood tall, hands coming together. "These people are precious to me. We share a home. We share a life. And though we may not share ties of blood, they are precious to me. They are my family!"

Quickly, he locked onto the sounds of combat, picking out where the cursed Reanimations of his teachers fought against Tsukiko.

Orochimaru chuckled darkly. "The pillar of your village. A pillar full of termites and rot. I don't have to knock you down. You're already falling."

"And if I do fall, you still will fail," Lord Third countered, gathering the tattered remains of his chakra. "I am only one of a long line. I carry this title in trust for those Hokage who came before, and those who will come after!" In his mind, he saw the smiling face of the blond boy who had caused trouble for him daily, but carried on with a deep pride and love for his friends and village. The old man smiled. "I am the Third Hokage! You can't stop it by destroying me. A new and stronger Hokage will take my place, becoming the pillar, roof, and walls that defend the village. Now Orochimaru, get ready. For I am about to perform a jutsu that even _you_ haven't seen before!"

He clapped his hands sharply, unleashing the last of his chakra. "Behold! Sealing Jutsu, Reaper Death Seal!"

Like before, nothing appeared to be happening. Only the Hokage could see the ogre-like Reaper move, a purple hand opening to release prayer beads as it floated behind him like a white-specter, growling. The old man felt his chakra being pulled out of him, taking his shape and hovering above him.

' _I've got to hurry. This darkness is dangerous.'_ He had no way of knowing how long Tsukiko would last.

"Well, must I make you show it to me?" Orochimaru sneered impatiently.

The Third Hokage flinched as several projectiles slammed into his armor, blocked only by the speed of his reflexes. One caught him in the shoulder, the blow making him fly back as pain flared from the wound, hot blood flowing from the shallow cut.

"What's the matter? Are you planning to let your predecessors pummel you to death?"

The muffled sounds of combat resumed, Tsukiko evidently having regained her hold on her opponents.

"Are you going to show me this jutsu or not?" Orochimaru asked angrily, his voice sounding closer.

' _Hurry. Hurry!'_

The Reaper, evidently having found his chakra satisfactory, raised its purple arm and flicked the prayer beads up. They curled and wrapped around the proffered limb like a twisting bracelet, dark splotches appearing and flowing down the Reaper's arm. It reached out, latching onto the blue chakra of the Third Hokage.

Pain exploded through the old man's chest, and he curled forward, spitting out blood as the Reaper seemed to rip out his insides. "Finally, it's done," he muttered. "And not a minute too soon."

"Aww, what's wrong?" Orochimaru chuckled. "You're reeling from fatigue already?"

Lord Third ignored him, listening for the faint noises that signified where the Reanimations were. ' _Now all that's left is to catch hold of him.'_

His clones shot forward, relying solely on their senses and instincts to pinpoint the correct locations. Reaching out, they felt the cloth of their former senseis' robes, and grabbed their shoulders with tightly. "Now I have you!" One shouted, groaning in pain as several sharp projectiles stabbed into him. "I won't let go! I summon thee!"

The Reaper reached through his chakra, his spectral hand appearing from his chest. The only sign of its presence was the physical hole it ripped through his clothing and the searing agony of it tearing through him.

The darkness seemed to freeze, then slowly bled away, revealing two of Lord Third's Clones gripping the Reanimations tightly. Only he could see the hands reaching through him and into his opponents.

"Sarutobi!" Enma shouted.

The Reanimations were in bad shape. They had been encased in a living stone that continued to grow and surround them, faster than they could break free. The rock curled around their limbs like vines, and slowly spread as if to consume the two former Hokages. At Lord Third's approach, however, the rock had fallen away.

Signs of the struggle were evident, several trees smashed or destroyed as Tsukiko ripped their water away, inadvertently clearing the way so that she and the Anbu could see what was happening once the darkness lifted.

Outside the barrier, the young woman fell to her knees, her vision swimming. ' _He did it,'_ she thought gratefully. ' _He caught them.'_ Her breathing was harsh and ragged, and her head was pounding. ' _Any more, and I might've been in serious trouble.'_ Her eyes faded back to black, but she didn't care. The Genjutsu had been broken, meaning that the Third Hokage must have done something significant.

This was further proven by the awareness that returned to the eyes of the long-dead shinobi, who gazed at their former student with pride and sorrow.

"Forgive us, Sarutobi," Lord First said mournfully.

"We made your life difficult," finished Lord Second, smiling sadly.

Lord Third swallowed heavily, eyes watering. "And forgive me, First Lord Hokage, Second Lord Hokage." As he spoke, the life seemed to be literally leached from the Reanimations, and they turned white. "Now, Seal!"

The two clones jerked back as if in pain, and the former Hokages crumbled, their bodies disintegrating to reveal the two Sound genin who hadn't advanced in the Third Exam.

Tsukiko shut her eyes and turned her head away in disgust. ' _Poor fools. Following a monster like that, they had no idea that they were merely pawns in a larger scheme.'_ She had been in their place, once. And though they were her enemies, she mourned the loss of talented shinobi, killed at the hands of their cruel master.

"You sacrificed your people," the Third Hokage growled, tears streaming down his face as he remembered his teachers, and what they had stood for. What they had died for. "You were meant to guide them, not toy with them as if they were dolls!"

"Are you finished, Sensei?" Orochimaru snapped. "Have we had enough of this nonsense yet?"

"The people put their faith in you!" He cried.

Tsukiko watched through blurry eyes as the two clones vanished, black markings visible on their skin where a sudden tear had appeared in their uniforms. She couldn't make it out, but it looked like a seal of some kind. It was vaguely familiar, but her exhausted mind couldn't place it.

Akio crouched next to her, his hand on her shoulder to help her stay sitting up. "Lord Third will be able to beat him now," he said with quiet conviction. "We've done all we can do."

"Enma, come!" Spurred on by his emotions, and the fact that he knew he had little time left, the Third Hokage took hold of his weapon and leapt at Orochimaru, so fast that the snake barely had time to grab his sword and block the coming blow.

After a series of clashes, the sword was knocked out of Orochimaru's hands by a particularly hard stroke, and Lord Third took swift advantage.

"I've got him!" He cried, extending his pole. Enma's hand appeared, ready to latch onto his opponent.

"Striking Shadow Snake!"

Three snakes shot out of Orochimaru's sleeve, wrapping around the pole and stopping its forward assault.

"Damn you!" Enma shouted, fangs embedding themselves painfully in his skin.

But it was merely a diversion.

Lord Third appeared in front of his former student and latched onto his shoulders tightly, half bent with pain. "Now to finish it!" He roared.

The Reaper behind him cackled, reaching through him once more to take hold of Orochimaru's soul.

Tsukiko shook her head blearily, not understanding what was happening. Like the Reanimations, Orochimaru seemed to be unable to move once the Hokage grabbed hold of him. From his earlier words, she knew he was using some sort of seal, but she had no idea what he was sealing or how he was doing it.

Orochimaru's eyes lit up with pain and panic, his fingers curling slightly as he willed the Grass Longsword to rise. Enma appeared behind Lord Third, weak from the snake venom and the effects of his clashing with the sword so many times.

Tsukiko's mouth opened to cry out a warning, and she desperately felt for any chakra, anything at all.

"Now die!"

"Now die!"

' _NO!'_

* * *

"I. Hate. Snakes!" With each word, Masuko landed another blow on the giant scaled creature, using her Racing Rock Jutsu to avoid the lunging fangs that were practically dripping with venom.

Three enormous greenish-brown snakes were working in tandem like one massive creature, destroying buildings and any attempt at an organized attack with their barbed tails and fast-striking heads.

"Now I know why Tsukiko can't stand these things!" She shouted, just dodging a painful death by those powerful jaws. Taking advantage of her close proximity to the head, she stabbed the offending snake's eye with her latest sword, "borrowed" from some of the Sound ninja. The flimsy things eroded quickly, but she had a few spares she'd appropriated from fallen enemies.

The beast jerked back with a loud hiss, head shaking wildly as blood splattered from its once yellow eye. It's tail slammed into the ground, trying to crush her, but Masuko was already gone.

"Where's our backup?!" Someone shouted to her left.

"How the hell should I know?!" She shot back, hurrying to stop the lead snake from getting any further into the village.

"Ninja Art: Summoning! Bring Down the House Jutsu!"

"What the hell?!"

A giant toad appeared, a massive brown and green animal with two swords strapped across its back. Dust and rubble flew as it landed, right on the back of one of the snakes.

Blood shot out of the squashed creature's mouth, and the light faded from its eyes as it fell.

"Whoa!" Masuko grinned, impressed. She looked over at Ibiki, who had been fighting at the front of the defensive line. "Who brought a frog to a snake fight?"

"Long time no see, Ibiki!" A cheerful voice rang out from on top of the toad's head. "My, my, what have they been feeding you?" He teased, his back to them. All Masuko could see were red and grey robes, long spiky white hair in a ponytail, and a large scroll strapped to the man's back. "You used to be such a little squirt."

"Master Jiraiya!" Ibiki's voice held a reverence that Masuko seldom heard in the Leaf, let alone from Ibiki.

' _That name does ring a bell…'_

"Jiraiya?! One of the Sannin?!" A ninja behind her spoke up.

Masuko's eyebrows shot up. "The Sannin?" She was old enough that she had some experience fighting in the Third Ninja War, where several of the Leaf Village's heroes had distinguished themselves. Of course, she was used to hearing the Sannin cursed, with muttered plans of revenge, so she doubted all she'd heard had been accurate. Still, that name struck several chords with her.

' _Now that I think about it...wasn't Orochimaru one of the Legendary Sannin?'_ The name had seemed familiar, but she'd chalked it up to her old paranoia kicking in. She'd never particularly cared to engage in gossip, as most of the villagers in the Mist had either wanted her dead or working under their control. But Tsukiko had been so worked up about this guy lately, she wondered if she ought to have paid more attention.

' _Kisame was more the intelligence-gathering guy,'_ she admitted to herself. ' _I'm more of a "What do I need to hit?" sort of person…'_

But Jiraiya, despite being a former teammate of Orochimaru, seemed to be firmly on their side. And now that she thought about it, Tsukiko had mentioned that a "Jiraiya-Sensei" had brought her that news about her clan's shrine.

Masuko grinned, shaking off her concerns. ' _Whatever. So long as Tsukiko trusts him, I will too.'_ Despite her initial misgivings about following someone so...fragile-looking, Masuko had come to respect the white-haired kunoichi. She had been through a lot, and hadn't taken advantage of Masuko when she'd shown weakness over Zabuza. Not to mention, anyone who could fight the way she could deserved to be admired. That girl was absolutely relentless when it came to protecting what she cared about, and had shown a fierceness that Masuko hadn't expected to see in someone who'd lived in a time of relative peace.

If she had to put a name to it, Masuko could conclude that she considered Tsukiko a close friend, a luxury she hadn't been able to experience in the Mist. Relationships and open friendship painted a target on your back there. But here, she was free to feel however she damn well pleased.

And that was a nice change.

"Alright you baby chicks!" Jiraiya continued, obviously under the impression that he looked pretty impressive to those on the ground. "Open wide those beady little eyes of yours!" He glanced back. "Watch closely!"

Turning, he hopped on one sandaled-foot, striking a weird pose. "When it comes to dealing with strange otherworldly freaks and monsters, no one's better than a strange hermit ninja! Thank goodness that Jiraiya's here!"

' _He's a strange fellow,'_ Masuko thought, her fang glinting as she grinned. ' _So let's see how well he fights.'_

Snakes number two and number three had directed their full attention to the one who'd killed their friend, and hissed menacingly.

Jiraiya was unfazed. "Now, unless you want to make this frog really mad, you'll never bother us again!" His smile dropped as he turned back to the snakes, recognizing them easily.

' _So that pain in the neck, Orochimaru, has finally started,'_ he thought morosely.

Ibiki and Masuko landed next to him, and he glanced briefly at the unfamiliar face of the purple-haired woman before turning to the scarred man. "Where's the Hokage?"

"The battle arena," Ibiki answered. "Fighting Orochimaru."

"Along with Tsukiko," the woman added.

"I see." He narrowed his eyes thoughtfully, considering their responses. His sensei could probably defeat the Orochimaru of several years past, but there's no telling what tricks he had up his sleeve. ' _Don't die on us, old man.'_

* * *

Blood burst from the chest of the Third Hokage, and Tsukiko let out a strangled shout of rage as the Grass Longsword stabbed through his chest, Enma holding onto a lower section of the blade. He hadn't been able to stop it in time.

"NO! Lord Third!" She tried to get to her feet.

Akio held her down. "There's nothing you can do!" He said roughly, voice thick with anger. "If you use any more chakra, you'll die."

Helplessly, Tsukiko watched Lord Hokage cough, body shaking with the effort of keeping his grip.

"Old man!" Orochimaru seemed shocked, his face contorted with pain from the Third Hokage's jutsu. "Why didn't you dodge it?"

"Sarutobi…" Enma trailed off, unable to say anything more.

"There was no need," Lord Third said simply. "The one who cast the Reaper Death Seal in order to send his enemy's soul to oblivion must sacrifice his own life if it is to work. It's a jutsu with a heavy price."

"Reaper...Death Seal?" Tsukiko repeated, her thoughts drifting away as darkness flickered across her vision. That sounded vaguely familiar. She'd done a lot of research over curse marks and seals this last month, trying to find a way to cure Sasuke.

The Hokage grinned with satisfaction. "So there was no need to dodge the blade. My fate is sealed."

Orochimaru gasped, trying to make a hand sign. He was, however, unable to use his chakra.

"It is a jutsu of the great hero who once saved this village. Once the seal is complete, I will die."

The snake's eyes narrowed with anger. "So then, this is the jutsu that sealed the Nine-Tailed Fox Spirit," he spat.

' _Naruto…'_ Tsukiko's brain finally caught up, and the helpless feeling squeezed her chest like a vise. No matter what she did, even if he received medical help this very second, Lord Third was going to die.

"Inch by inch, your soul will be dragged out of you and sealed forever!" The Hokage promised grimly.

Now there was real fear in the dark-haired man's eyes as he struggled to break the older man's iron grip.

"Another moment or two, and you'll be able to see it. Your soul is nearly halfway out. You'll be able to bid a last farewell to it, but not to your suffering. For those souls that are sealed by this jutsu are doomed to suffer for eternity in the belly of the Reaper, never to rest in peace. There, the souls of the sealed and the sealer are forever intertwined, bound together by hatred, locked in ceaseless combat, until the end of time!"

Behind him, the terrifying specter opened its mouth, using its free hand to remove the sword that had been held between the two rows of sharp teeth.

Orochimaru's head jerked up, his eyes widening. "What is that?!" He demanded, his fearful gaze locked on something Tsukiko couldn't see.

The Reaper's tongue trailed along its grey fangs grotesquely, saliva streaming down its chin. It was hungry, and impatient to take its prey. It moved closer to the combatants.

The chakra-form of the Hokage shuddered, and two light blue forms emerged from it, spectral tails connecting it to the chakra. They were the souls of the First and Second Hokages, wrapped around the partial souls of the Third Hokage's Shadow Clones. Only the heads were visible, moaning in agony as they tried to escape each other.

But the Reaper had them trapped. Slowly, deliberately enjoying this moment, the creature raised his blade. With a quick slice, it cut through the tails grounding the souls to this world, and opened its mouth to devour them.

The souls screamed in horror and pain as the Reaper's teeth clamped down. Gold eyes watched with stunned realization as the creature slowly devoured its prey, the grisly sound of his chewing echoing as it watched him. It continued to smile as it chewed, eying him hungrily. ' _You're next.'_

"You old fool!" Orochimaru shouted, enraged. "Do you really think I'll just stand here like a frightened child and do nothing?!" With near manic desperation, he beckoned the Grass Longsword forward, urging it to kill the Third Hokage before he could finish the seal.

Lord Third grunted with pain as the sword slowly moved, draining his already limited strength as it destroyed his insides. He was gasping, sweat beading on his brow as he forced himself to keep standing, to keep going.

"Go on, Sensei," Orochimaru urged, laughing with a relieved madness. "Hurry up and die!" His breathing was harsh, but he could feel his soul slowly being pulled back into his body.

The old man groaned with the effort and pain of clinging to his former student's soul, but he could feel it slipping away, as his vision flickered slightly. He was dying, faster than he could defeat Orochimaru. ' _To have come this far, this far…"_ he thought bitterly. ' _To have his cursed soul in my hands, and not have the strength to finish it! This decrepit old body...Is it not enough that I'm prepared to die?!'_ He cursed his age once more as the blade was pulled further, despite Enma's grip on it. The Monkey King was weakened from his fight, snake venom coursing through him. Inch by inch, Orochimaru was winning.

"Sarutobi!" Enma's voice was deepened with pain, his hand bleeding profusely. "Kill him now! Because if you do not, the village is finished! Doomed! Do you understand?"

"Yes," the old man managed, choking slightly on his blood. "I understand." Ignoring the agony in his chest, he once more gathered the burning will that had allowed him to lead and protect the Leaf these long years. Ignoring his age, Lord Third forced himself to forget the face of his student, seeing only a threat. And finally, ignoring his own fear of his fate inside the Reaper's belly, he pulled hard on the soul, a grunt of satisfaction leaving him as he felt it come towards him.

"Never!" Orochimaru's voice was little more than a strangled hiss. "Foolish old man!"

"Tsukiko…" Akio's voice was low, heavy with the burden of witnessing this battle. "Can you see what's happening? It's unheard of for two shinobi to last this long in single combat, but I don't understand. It looks like they're both just standing there. Lord Third is sealing away Orochimaru's soul?"

"I don't...know," she managed, trying to clear the fog in her mind. "If he dies before he can finish the jutsu, we may still have a fight on our hands."

She studied Orochimaru's face, tight with malice. "I can't tell who's winning."

' _Please let it be Lord Third,'_ she prayed. If Orochimaru died here, everything would be fixed. Sasuke wouldn't be able to leave, the invasion would fall apart, and one of the Leaf's greatest threats would be neutralized.

"Don't you think it's time you took a rest, old man?" The snake sneered, watching the blood leak from his sensei's mouth.

"I won't let this village be swallowed up by your ambition," the Third Hokage growled.

"Nothing can stop my ambition! You are going to die here. I don't care if you are Third Hokage, you're nothing but a withered old fool! Do you honestly believe you have the strength needed to stop me now?" Orochimaru's voice was filled with hatred and rage, having realized that for the first time in a while, he was in danger of being killed. "Have you even the slightest idea what's befalling your precious little village?" He was goading the old man, trying to distract him and stall for time until the sword's damaged overwhelmed him. "Even as we speak, the shinobi of the Sand Village, as well as my own men, have made their presence known."

Orochimaru chuckled. "It won't be long before your people are annihilated down to every last woman and child. The Hidden Leaf Village will cease to exist!" He laughed, a strained cackle filled with madness.

His teacher's eyes closed briefly in acknowledgment of his words, but opened with a steely determination. "For all your cunning, you still don't get it, do you, Orochimaru?" He glared at the startled man, voice heavy with promise. "Do not underestimate the shinobi of this village. Never mind the odds our Leaf shinobi are up against. They'll lay down their lives for this village!"

Tsukiko listened closely, her head bowed. She realized that these may very well be the last words spoken by her leader, and she was determined to commit them to memory.

"How little you understand. Mastering every jutsu will not give you unsurpassable strength. It was one of my first lessons," he continued, his voice strong and unwavering. "It's not until you've protected someone precious to you that the true strength of the shinobi can emerge!"

Lord Third coughed up more blood, but his eyes lost none of their fire. "Alright then. You and I both know I haven't the strength left to rip all of your soul from its shell. You and I both know that...And yet, your ambitions end here and now!"

"This isn't over!" Orochimaru screamed, trying to force his body away from the Hokage's grasp. "There isn't any stopping my ambition!"

"Yours is an obsession!" Lord Third thundered, tightening his grip to a painful degree. "This need to drown yourself in jutsu...And for this transgression, you shall be punished! I shall take away all the jutsu you hold so dear!"

"What did you say?!" The snake snarled.

"Haaaaaaaaaah!" With a loud roar, Lord Third _pulled_ , the Reaper's blade swinging down in the same moment, it's target the blue soul only half removed from the dark-haired man's body.

"Impossible! You wouldn't dare!" His screams turned into a cry of anguish as the blade severed the soul, feeling his arms becoming limp as pain exploded through them.

"The Seal is set!" The old man let out his own cry of pain as the familiar swirling seal appeared on his stomach.

Finally able to move, Orochimaru looked down at his hands with horror as they turned purple, the same sickening shade as the Reaper's own skin. Any attempt to move them was pure agony, but he pushed past it, trying to force the useless appendages to create hand signs, funnel chakra, do _anything_. "My—My arms!"

Tsukiko's eyes widened at the sight, but she turned her attention back to Lord Third.

Anger and satisfaction warred in his features. "There you have it. Your arms are useless to you now. And without those arms, you will never form another hand sign! Ninjutsu is forever out of your reach!"

Unable to feel anything but the searing pain, Orochimaru allowed his arms to drop lifelessly, his head bowing as the weight of what he'd lost was revealed.

"Your loathsome dream of crushing this village dies here!"

"You feeble old man!" the snake screeched, pure hatred and rage distorting his features into a stretched expression of malice and insanity. "GIVE ME BACK MY ARMS!"

The Hokage stepped back, feeling the relentless tugging of the Reaper as darkness began to descend. He smiled gently, no longer feeling any grudge or regret, save for that of a job left undone. Old as he was, he had won. "Your foolishness is unparalleled, Orochimaru. My one regret is that I couldn't take you with me. Farewell, disciple. May we meet again in the next world."

"You decrepit old man! How dare you! How dare you take my jutsu from me!"

But Hiruzen could no longer hear, and as his eyes closed one final time, the screaming man was transformed into the smiling child who used to look at the world with wonder and curiosity, not hate and ambition.

' _I'm sorry, Orochimaru, for not leading you down a brighter path. And I'm sorry to you Tsukiko, for all that I've done. You will never know the truth now, never know of my greatest moment of weakness.'_

He thought of Naruto, of the one who showed such promise for the future. ' _Where the tree leaves dance, one shall find flames. The fire's shadow will illuminate the village...and once again, tree leaves shall bud anew.'_

Briefly, the image of a dark-haired boy with red eyes flashed in his mind. One who still fought to protect his village from the darkest of shadows, who would die hated and alone. ' _He would have made a fine Hokage.'_

And then, oblivion.

* * *

"Lord Third…" Tsukiko whispered, tears trailing down her face as the body of the Hokage fell, a peaceful smile on his features as he hit the ground with a dull thud that seemed to echo in her mind.

Orochimaru stared at the body blankly as Enma crawled forward, surprised at the faint sorrow he felt at the sight of his sensei's broken form. But, as his arms flared with pain once more, his hatred ripped that weak emotion to shreds.

"Sarutobi, let me remove the blade," Enma said weakly, his hand shaking as he grasped the hilt. He pulled it out cleanly, head hanging low as he mourned his old friend. ' _A fitting end for one who had mastered the way of the shinobi.'_ Then, he vanished with a puff of smoke, taking the Grass Longsword with him, as a memento of the Third Hokage's last stand.

"My arms...feel as if they're on fire…" Orochimaru hissed with helpless fury.

"Lord Orochimaru!" One of the shield casters, the one with two heads, cried out in concern at his leader's slumped form.

"Our mission has failed," he said simply, voice weak with defeat. "Release the barrier. Take me back."

Tsukiko's eyes shot to the defeated shinobi, and she struggled to her feet.

"Right!" The voices of the four Sound ninja called out in unison. "Release!"

The purple walls shuddered, and momentarily parted and swayed like great flames before exploding, leaving only the tangled trunks to mark the scene of the great battle.

"Stop!" Tsukiko shouted, pushing her body past its limits as she ran towards the man who had to die, couldn't be allowed to find a way to fix himself.

Akio and his team were in better shape than her, and easily overtook her weakened form, chasing after the snake.

As she darted forward, about to leap off the roof, Tsukiko's head swam, and it suddenly seemed like the ground was coming closer, the orange tiles filling her vision.

She was unconscious before she hit the ground.

* * *

"Masuko-Sensei!"

The purple-haired woman turned her head to see her two students.

"Hey, you two," she greeted, shielding her eyes from the sun as she watched the Sand and Sound shinobi retreat, most of them badly wounded. "I'm glad you're alright."

Inwardly, she sighed with relief. Right as the battle began, Chiyo had raced off after that Gaara kid, Midori close behind. She had been worried that they were biting off more than they could chew, but had no time to try and help.

Of course, "alright" wasn't exactly the case. Their clothes were torn and dirty, and Midori's head wound had reopened, blood slowly flowing down her face. Chiyo looked worn and exhausted, covered in bruises and cuts. Still, there was something about their eyes, something that told the older woman that the two had seen something that had forced them to grow up a little, to accept new ideas or responsibilities. It was something she'd seen in the eyes of the young Mist ninja after a particularly hard mission or test. And it made her sad, to know that some of their innocence was lost. But this was a cold and cruel world, with many different sides to it. Understanding that was part of being a ninja, no matter which nation.

"Yeah, we're fine," Chiyo said with a tired grin. "Naruto beat Gaara, and he and his pals retreated." She looked like she wanted to say more, but cut herself off.

Masuko cocked her head, eying the young girl speculatively. ' _She needs some time to figure it all out in her head.'_

"No one was seriously injured," Midori added, swaying slightly. "Everyone is okay."

Their sensei smiled warmly, and in spite of their exhausted states and the pain of their wounds, the two girls felt unmistakable pride.

"Where's Tsukiko-sensei?" Midori asked, looking around.

Masuko's smile faded, and she looked up at the arena roof where the purple barrier had been. "I'm just about to go and check. You girls go find a medic."

Obediently, the two turned and left, and Masuko took off, quickly jumping from roof to roof, her leg muscles screaming in protest. It had been a while since she'd fought that hard or that long in chakra armor, and it had taken its toll.

Landing on the roof, she immediately spotted Tsukiko's prone form, her white hair spilling across the orange tiles like blood.

At the sight of the face-down body, Masuko pulled in a sharp breath, forgetting her pain as she shot forward.

Quickly, she rolled the younger woman over and ripped away her green vest, immediately rewarded with the sight of her chest slowly rising and falling as her unconscious body tried to mend itself.

She didn't have any wounds Masuko could see, which meant that the little fool had used too much chakra. The older woman sighed loudly, her head in her hands. "You idiot," she muttered in a strained voice. "For a second, I thought I lost my only friend."

Sighing once more, she raised her head and steadfastly ignored her watery eyes as she searched for a medic. Scanning the roof, she caught sight of a second body, deep within the tree line.

"Oh, no…"

This time, there was no need for her to make an examination. The pool of blood staining the roof and dark material of the Third Hokage's uniform was more than enough.

Masuko raised the alarm, and it didn't take long for more Leaf shinobi to appear, Kakashi and Guy arriving almost as soon as she called out. Another group found the team of Anbu sent to chase after Orochimaru, tangled in a dense chakra web that prevented them from moving.

A somber crowd had gathered around the Third Hokage's body which Masuko had respectfully turned over onto his back and pulled away from the blood. She felt it the least she could do, for the man who had given her a second chance at life before losing his own.

Hands bloodied as they were, she had been reluctant to pick up Tsukiko. Kakashi has solved that problem, wordlessly scooping her up before taking his place in the silent circle.

No one spoke, each reluctant to break the silence and lost in their thoughts. Anger, sadness, despair, and quiet acceptance darkened many faces, and while others could only stare blankly.

Masuko hadn't known the Hokage well or even long enough to feel more than regret and sadness, but from the people around her, she could tell that a truly great leader had been lost to them that day.

Her eyes once more landed on Tsukiko. She looked small in Kakashi's arms, and Masuko was once again reminded that, strong as she was, Tsukiko was only a few years older than their students.

The older woman felt a surge of affection for her friend. ' _She gave it all she had, and more. I just need to make sure she doesn't blame herself.'_

Orochimaru had escaped, their leader was dead, and Sasuke was still in danger. These were the facts, and unfortunate as they were, there was no changing that. Masuko had ample practice being forced to accept a shitty situation. Now was the time to be strong and offer full support to the next Hokage, whoever they may be.

' _I promise this, old man. I'll repay what I owe. You gave me a home to protect and defend with my life, and I intend to do just that. Konohagakure will remain strong.'_

And, looking around at the troubled shinobi, she saw similar resolve on their faces. Guy met her gaze, and a new understanding passed between them, a confirmation of something Masuko had been feeling for a while now.

' _I'm not alone here. I have a family. I belong.'_

* * *

"Are you alright? The doctor said you shouldn't move around that much," Sasuke noted, leaning in the doorframe as he watched Tsukiko getting ready.

"Yeah, well, what does he know?" She countered, straightening her formal robe as she looked in the mirror. "I'm going, and he's not going to stop me."

It was the morning of the Third Hokage's funeral, just a few days after the battle. Tsukiko had woken up after being unconscious for nearly twenty-six hours, and had been ordered to stay in bed for a few days.

She'd complied until that morning, her emotions and body not allowing her to argue. But now, after giving herself time to grieve and process what had happened, she couldn't sit still any longer. She had to properly say goodbye.

Masuko had visited, as had the girls, but it was hard to be cheerful, given the circumstances. Tsukiko had accepted the news of Orochimaru's escape as well as could be expected, and had spent much of her time in bed wondering what she could have done differently.

Nothing had come to mind. She couldn't have broken the barrier sooner, or the Reanimations would've escaped, and by the time Lord Third had cast the Reaper Death Seal, it was already too late.

That was somehow worse, knowing that she couldn't have done anything. Shame and guilt clawed at her throat as she realized that she'd been too weak to have had other options. She'd been utterly outclassed.

"Sasuke…" Tsukiko turned to the young boy who'd been silently by her side the last few days. "After all this is over, you and I are going to start training together."

The young Uchiha looked up, startled. That hadn't been what he was expecting. "What do you mean?"

Pulling her long tresses up into a formal bun, she smiled thinly. "I mean, I hated having to stand by and do nothing while others did all the work. I hated the feeling of knowing I wasn't good enough. And I want more power, enough to not be in that position again."

She was walking a thin line here, but it was the truth. And seeing the same frustration in Sasuke's eyes made her wonder at how similar they actually were.

Sasuke nodded, his jaw tight. He knew that Tsukiko knew about Naruto taking down Gaara, how he hadn't been able to do much against the creature inside the Sand genin. But he also knew that she wasn't lying about her own feelings.

Tsukiko nodded, seeing the determination in his eyes. "Kakashi and I already talked about it," she continued. "We'll both be training you between our other duties and whenever you have time. When you're with him, I'll be working on my own or with Masuko. That way, we'll both grow stronger."

She hesitated then, and moved to sit on her bed, a luxury she'd acquired since they'd moved to this house. Patting the space next to her, she gestured for him to sit as well. "And, I also wanted to talk to you about something."

"It's the curse mark, right?" Sasuke asked flatly, the brief flare of excitement at the mention of training fading.

"Yes," she said simply. "I don't want you to rely on its power."

"I already know about Orochimaru," he said, dodging the issue. "You told me what he said."

"Then you should understand," Tsukiko cut in, her voice hard and unyielding. "Using that thing will only tie you tighter to him, and it won't be your own power. Let us train you, let me show you everything I know. And then..." She closed her eyes in quiet misery. "If you still want to leave the village to train, you can. But not with him. You can't accept what he's offering, because the price of that power is far too great."

Sasuke's eyes widened at her statement. She was giving him permission to actually leave, to seek power wherever he could find it. The young Uchiha watched her face carefully, seeing the truth there and realizing what it cost her to say that.

He swallowed, his throat closing. It was hard, too hard to be what he needed to be around her, especially at times like this. Half of him wanted to dissolve into that little boy he'd been three years ago, to be able to hug her and find comfort in her affection and support. But the other half resented her for making him feel weak when he needed to be strong.

Itachi's face flashed in his mind, taunt ringing in his ears. Sasuke gritted his teeth angrily. He didn't care. He didn't care how he obtained the power he needed, or the risk it came with. So long as he killed him.

' _But Tsukiko knows Itachi best, knows his fighting style,'_ his mind argued. ' _And Orochimaru no longer has the use of his arms. What can he offer you that she can't? If I can defeat Tsukiko, I can beat Itachi.'_

She sat patiently, watching his emotions play out in his eyes, as his face was the same cold mask he usually wore. Tsukiko could see that he was coming to a decision, and could only pray that, after laying all the cards on the table, he'd choose her way.

"Okay," he said finally, nodding his head. "I won't use the curse mark. I won't go to Orochimaru."

He was unprepared for Tsukiko to throw her arms around him and pull him close, and instantly stiffened. But he relaxed as she started shaking, and he understood how worried she'd been these past few weeks. Guilt briefly overwhelmed his carefully constructed walls, and he awkwardly returned the hug, giving in to the childish part of him that just wanted his big sister.

After a few seconds, Tsukiko pulled back, aware of his discomfort, and gave him a watery smile. "Alright. Let's go."

* * *

It was a simple funeral, conducted by Homura and Koharu, but a powerful one. The overcast sky finally released the rain it had been threatening since that morning, the heavens seemingly weeping over the loss of a truly great leader.

All over the village, people mourned not only their Hokage, but the lives of all those who were lost in the invasion, the brave souls who had given their lives to protect the Leaf.

Standing there, placing a flower on a coffin that held a broken body, Tsukiko was suddenly reminded of every memory she had of the old man. Being brought to the village, hearing him praise her teamwork with Itachi, and her progress with her Gensogan, all the times he'd visited her after the Massacre, making her a jounin, giving her a team, teaching her about Lightning, and so much more. It was all too much, but somehow, not enough.

And yet, none of this showed on her face. Solemn, expressionless, the perfect picture of a shinobi. They could cry in their homes, or behind the privacy of a closed door, but never out where others will see and find something to manipulate. And to respect the memory of Lord Third, one of the greatest shinobi, she didn't shed a tear.

' _Thank you, Lord Third. We will carry on your Will of Fire.'_

As she stepped back, the clouds parted, and the sun rained down on her face, like the smile of a proud mentor. Tsukiko took one final breath, and released it, along with her remaining sorrows. It was a new dawn. Time to start anew.

And just as she had that thought, she felt someone watching her. Her eyes searched the crowd, and landed on a face she hadn't seen in well over a year.

"Eri?"

* * *

"Well, it survived," a gravelly voice noted, overlooking the mostly destroyed village. "But barely. The damage is extensive." He grinned, sharp teeth shining menacingly as he gripped his sword. "Must've been quite the fight. I'm almost sad we missed it."

The two black-cloaked figures stood on the cliffs above the village, wide-brimmed hats and tall collars shadowing their faces. The red clouds on their cloaks gleamed like blood yet to be spilled as the two men took stock of the decimated village.

"Not long ago, it was at the height of its glory," came the cool voice of his companion. "Look at it now."

The first man looked at his partner curiously, hearing a certain strain in his words. It was a tone he'd used only a few times, when talking about his past. "Hmm...you sound almost sad." He grinned, watching closely. "Don't tell me you still have feelings for your old home?"

This was a rare chance indeed. Very rarely did the young man talk about himself, and even more rarely did he mention his ties to this village. Those conversations were strained, brief, and clipped, if not nearly hostile.

"No. None." The quick and proper reply, with no hint of falsehood. And yet…

"I don't know if I totally believe you," the man said, running a hand across his Mist headband, feeling the gouge he'd made in the metal the day he'd left. "I can't say I miss the Mist, but there are a few things I wouldn't mind seeing again."

A purple-haired woman's face floated up in his mind, and the man's grin faltered for a second. "Always a good fight to be had there," he added, recovering quickly.

The dark-haired male next to him didn't seem to notice, but that didn't mean anything. Those eyes saw everything.

But, to give himself some credit, he didn't miss much either. There was an urgency to his companion, and those crazy eyes of his were already moving, as if hoping to catch a glimpse of something.

Or someone.

Kisame grinned wider, feeling his own anticipation surge. ' _I doubt he's looking for the target.'_

"Let's go, Itachi. I have a feeling this is going to be fun."

* * *

A.N. _*Laughs evilly*_ Aaaaand we'll leave it there for now. A couple of cliffhangers, another OC (who's entire creation was based on a request I got a little while ago for a story. No spoilers now, but I'll thank that person later) and a reunion long coming.

Please review and give me your thoughts. I'm constantly tweaking my own ideas, and any input is welcome. Like me adding an OC, something you want or a cute headcanon/flashback idea, I'm all ears.

Also next time: the reveal of why I chose this title and the birth of this story! (Major props to anyone who can guess how the name happened)

Thank you very much for reading!


	21. Chapter 19

A.N. Okay! I'm alive! And I apologize for the unscheduled hiatus, but I had midterms and a distinct uptick in the difficulty of my class work. Thank you all for your support and patience! Your comments made me laugh and smile, and motivated me to rewrite this set of chapters at least 4 times! I had several ideas about where this was going to go, and in the end, I'm happy.

This section is going to include a flashback, because I don't want a pure A.N. Chapter, and because I wrote way too much and had to break this apart. Anyway, announcements:

Haunted is in Brazilian Portuguese now! I know, crazy, right?! Well, the fantastic Collar offered to translate for me, and it's SO cool! Just go to Quotev and look and my profile there if you are interested in seeing it!

Also! I promised that I would mention the inspiration behind the name of this piece, and a general storyline. Lot of you had really good guesses about the feelings and reasoning behind this, and you're all right. But the name itself, and the feeling I'm trying to capture with this reunion in the next chapter is from…. a SONG!

Yup. Little did you know, you've been reading a song fic this whole time! *evil laughter*

But seriously, I listen to music all the time, and I can't help but try to fit them to anime sometimes. This one was too perfect. So, I highly recommend you all listen to Haunted by Taylor Swift (my favorite singer) before reading the next chapter. I think you'll see what I'm doing.

As always, please comment and tell me what you think. We passed 500 hearts and 50 follows while I was on this hiatus, and I am eternally grateful that those of you who take the time to comment are always so encouraging!

* * *

Then:

Tsukiko sighed, her legs curled to her chest as she sat under a tall oak tree near the clearing where she and Itachi spent their free time training. There was a soft breeze flowing that felt good against her hot face, still lined with tear marks.

Concerned that they'd never taken a proper day off in the five months since they'd become chunin, the village had ordered Itachi and Tsukiko to use the next week as a vacation of sorts. And Lord Fugaku had agreed, forbidding them to even train with Shisui.

It was weird, having all this time on her hands, but it couldn't have come at a worse moment. Unable to use missions as an excuse to escape from the glares and disgust of her clanmates, Tsukiko stayed inside most of the time, or hid out in the forest, as she was doing now. She'd spent a lot of time with Itachi and Sasuke, playing and helping the young boy train.

' _He's so big now…'_

Just a short while ago, Sasuke had been crawling around and babbling nonsensically. But now, he could walk and talk, and followed her and Itachi everywhere, talking about his day, his training, and anything else that popped into his head. He had been beyond delighted that his brother and sister could spend so much time with him, given that they usually weren't home. Tsukiko had enjoyed herself. It was good to just spend time with her family.

But even that was short-lived. After three days, Lord Fugaku had told them to go out and spend time with people their own age. And that was where the trouble began.

The only ones Tsukiko could talk to were Itachi and Shisui. She had stopped seeing Izumi so often, as she didn't want her to face the wrath of her fellow Uchiha peers.

But that hadn't stopped the young girl. Izumi often went out of her way to pop up around wherever Tsukiko was and spend time with her. She wasn't old enough to go to the secret Uchiha meetings, and with most of the adults out of the way, it was safe for them to be seen around the village together.

Izumi had suggested that Tsukiko make friends outside the clan, as she had many admirers. But that felt like she was doing exactly what she was accused of: choosing the village over her people.

' _What a stupid argument…'_ Lady Mikoto and Lord Fugaku had done their best to make her feel welcome, but had only made her feel worse.

When Lady Mikoto suggested that she would like a bedroom of her own, panic and absolute misery had enveloped her. It felt like they were trying to separate her from Itachi and Sasuke, to keep them safe from her.

Lord Fugaku had been quick to dispel those fears, but there was a tension in the house now. Itachi was troubled and angry with his father, but wouldn't tell her why. After she'd been told that she'd been publicly acknowledged by Fugaku, as well as recommended for the Anbu with Itachi, she thought everything would be okay again.

But Itachi was still upset about something, and he was hiding things from her again. Tsukiko had gotten the sense that he wasn't trying to hurt her feelings, but it still felt like a punch to the gut.

So it was with some relief that she encountered Izumi on her way home from running errands. The two had gotten to talking, but Izumi had been quiet for most of the walk home.

" _Hey…" she said after several seconds of silence. "Does Itachi like me?"_

 _Tsukiko cocked her head confused at the sudden question. "Sure he does. You're his friend."_

" _I'm_ your _friend," Izumi corrected, smiling sadly. "But I don't think he's comfortable around me yet."_

 _That was news to the white-haired girl. She thought about it for several seconds, replaying their conversations. Sure, at first he'd been reluctant to have her around, but he seemed to generally like her now._

" _Well…" she said slowly, coming to a stop with her bag of groceries in hand. "Maybe you just need to spend more time together."_

 _Izumi's expression had brightened. "Really? You don't mind?"_

" _Why would I mind?" Tsukiko smiled happily. "You're one of my best friends, so of course I want you two to get along."_

 _The Uchiha girl smiled back, suddenly more energetic. "You're one of my best friends too. But are you sure you're okay with me spending time with Itachi alone?"_

 _For a moment, Tsukiko's expression froze, and she was silent. But before Izumi could notice the pause, her brain responded automatically. "Sure. Why don't you go get some dango with him? He'll like that for sure."_

 _And Izumi had been so excited, that Tsukiko couldn't say what she'd actually been thinking, what she'd actually felt._

She sighed again, a tear escaping. In truth, she hadn't thought that Izumi was asking to be alone with Itachi. She thought that the three of them would hang out together, like always. And when Tsukiko had realized that Izumi didn't actually want her to come, the immediate hurt that she'd felt made her freeze. And with that came the realization that...she didn't want Itachi to go with her, wanted him to refuse.

But that was selfish. Jealousy was not something Tsukiko enjoyed feeling, especially where her friends were involved. And she couldn't tell whether she was jealous of Izumi for being able to be in a public place with Itachi without getting glared at, or Itachi for being able to the same with Izumi. It felt like, once they realized how much easier it was without her there, that they would start to leave her out more and more.

Itachi had sensed that something was wrong, but had allowed Izumi to drag him away after Tsukiko claimed that she wasn't feeling well.

And so, she'd retreated to the woods to cry and generally feel miserable, grasping for any thought that would make her feel better. Strangely, thoughts of Itachi and Izumi only made her mood darken further.

"Tsukiko? Is that you?"

Shisui's concerned voice came from the opposite end of the clearing.

Quickly, the young girl wiped her eyes on her sleeve, placing a bright smile on her features as she bounced up. "Hi, Shisui! What are you doing here?"

The older boy slowly took in her dirty, wrinkled clothing, frizzy hair, and puffy red eyes, his own eyes darkening with anger. "Looking for you," he said, forcing his tone to seem measured and calm. He was quickly losing patience with his clanmates' actions and attitude towards the small girl. He had voiced his objections many times, but had been brushed off by the older shinobi. And because they didn't care, the younger generation followed their lead.

"Is something wrong?" She asked timidly, grasping her hands tightly.

"No, nothing," he quickly reassured her, sitting down in the grass. He patted the spot next to him, a clear gesture for her to sit. "I just saw Itachi in town with Izumi, and he told me you weren't feeling well, so I wanted to check up on you."

Nodding, Tsukiko slowly sat down. "I feel better now," she lied, not making eye contact.

"I see," he said skeptically, pausing long enough to let her know that he'd seen through her. "Well, I'm glad to hear that you aren't sick, but you still look pretty upset to me."

Silence greeted him, and Shisui was struck by how alike Tsukiko and Itachi were. Neither were willing to share their pain with the other, preferring to suffer in silence.

So maybe the same tactic would work.

"If it helps, Itachi didn't look like he was particularly enjoying himself," Shisui offered, hoping to get a reaction out of the quiet girl.

It worked, but not in the way he was expecting.

"Really?" Tsukiko sighed sadly. "I guess Izumi was right then. Itachi doesn't like her very much. I was hoping they'd become better friends, but if that's not the case, then all of this was pointless." She stared gloomily into the trees.

Shisui raised an eyebrow. ' _That was...unexpected.'_

"Oh," he said, leaning back . "And here I thought you were upset because you were jealous."

"I am," she answered quietly, and his eyebrows shot higher.

"You are?" He repeated, thoroughly confused.

Tsukiko looked away ashamed. "Itachi can go have fun with Izumi without anyone saying rude things or giving them dirty looks. And Izumi is going to realize it's easier to be Itachi's friend than mine. I was afraid that they'd both get along so well that they won't want me around anymore."

The older boy scratched his head. ' _Okay, not what I was expecting to hear. So she's jealous of...Itachi?'_

"Hmph," he snorted, falling back with his arms out on the soft grass. "That won't happen," he said confidently. "Itachi would never leave you for Izumi."

Her eyes widened, and she turned to him. "I didn't even think of that," she said worriedly, her voice getting higher as she panicked. "I just thought they would start hanging out more without me. I didn't think Itachi would—"

"Whoa! Whoa!" Shisui sat up quickly, waving his arms. "I'm not trying to make it worse! All I'm saying is that Izumi is a very sweet girl, and she probably likes Itachi in a romantic sense. But I know that he doesn't feel the same, so you don't have anything to worry about."

"She...likes Itachi?" Tsukiko looked at him blankly.

He grinned awkwardly, feeling like an idiot. He'd seen the two out on a little date, and jumped to conclusions. "Yeah, seems like it. That's probably what she wanted to spend time with him alone."

"But...what does that have to do with me?" The white-haired girl seemed honestly confused.

Shisui stared at her, mouth slightly open. ' _Poor Itachi,'_ he thought with mock sadness. ' _She may be mature for her age, but when it comes to love, she's way behind.'_

He realized, after a moment, that Tsukiko was still waiting for him to respond. "Well, nothing, I guess. I just wondered if you also liked Itachi."

"Of course I do!" She answered automatically, but he was already shaking his head.

"No, I mean the way Izumi does. Romantically."

The older boy watched her mouth open and close several times, her cheeks darkening as she thought about what he was saying. Inwardly, he cheered. ' _There might actually be hope for these two idiots!'_

"I—You—He—" Tsukiko started helplessly, cutting herself off. She'd never once thought of Itachi in that sense, but found herself strangely embarrassed and confused, as if she'd been caught off-guard. "Itachi is my best friend," she said finally, unable to meet the grinning boy's eyes.

"It's okay, Tsukiko," Shisui said kindly, finally relenting his teasing. "Love is complicated and difficult. You're still too young to be worrying about all that nonsense. There's plenty of time for that when you're at my old age."

The white-haired girl cocked her head. "So are you saying there's someone who you like?"

The face of a girl with brown hair flashed in his mind, her green eyes glaring at him from behind stern glasses.

"N-No," he coughed awkwardly. "Nothing like that."

Tsukiko looked at him suspiciously, but let it go. She was too confused about everything. "I just want this week to be over so we can go back in missions and join the Anbu," she said grumpily. "At least then, I can hide behind a mask."

Shisui sighed, unable to think of anything to say to that. "Come on. Let's do some training."

She looked up, startled. "But Lord Fugaku said—"

The older boy made a show of looking around before shrugging. "Well, I don't see him here, and I'm not planning on telling him, so unless you're going to rat us out…"

"No!" Excited now, Tsukiko jumped up, bouncing on the balls of her feet. "I think I finally have my new fire whips down, so you'd better watch out!"

Shisui groaned, shaking his head at a curious squirrel in the branch above his head. "I come over to talk to her, and the first thing she does is launch a flaming whip at me," he complained.

The squirrel cocked its head and chattered as if to say _well, you're the one who suggested training._

Tsukiko laughed at the affronted look on the older boy's face, her eyes turning red as she lowered to a crouch. "I agree, Mr. Squirrel."

The Uchiha boy shrugged, seeing that he wasn't going to gain any sympathy. "Alright. Hit me with your best shot."

* * *

Itachi walked slowly, glancing over his shoulder to see which direction Shisui had gone. He was worried about Tsukiko, and glad that the older boy had offered to go check on her, but he was also mildly frustrated that he couldn't go himself.

Of course, Izumi was bouncing along beside him happily, talking about the new tea shop that opened up and how good it was. Itachi had to admit, he was coming to enjoy her company more and more, especially since the Uchiha girl was one of the only ones who was nice to Tsukiko. But without Tsukiko, he didn't really know how to talk to this girl.

"Hey, are you listening to me?" Izumi's high-pitched voice asked teasingly. "We're almost there."

They had left the clan compound, and had come into the center of the had received several knowing looks from adults passing by, and with each one, Izumi seemed to become increasingly happy. Itachi, for his part, didn't care about what people thought, seeing them together like this. He was taking a walk with a friend. There was nothing else to it.

The tea shop was cozy, and situated in a prime spot in the center of a market area. From the amount of customers, it was clear the little place would soon become a favorite.

Looking around at the simple decoration, Itachi had the sense that Tsukiko would like this place, and resolved to bring her here when she was feeling better. The more time she spent out of the compound, the better.

His eyes saw a mirror on the wall, low enough and at an angle so that he'd be able to see the entrance without being obvious. Directing his companion to the table nearest to it, they took their seats.

"Two orders of dango and tea, please!" Izumi called out, sitting so that she faced the front of the building, her back to the mirror.

"Jasmine for me," Itachi added, knowing that the usual pairing was green tea and dango. His mother didn't care for it, so he was used to drinking Jasmine tea with his sweets. It was a habit he didn't care enough about to break.

"Comin'!" A familiar voice rang out from the back of the shop. "Oh! If it ain't Itachi!" The accented voice was that of an old teammate.

"Shinko," the boy greeted, nodding his head politely. In the back of his mind, he noted that Tsukiko would love to talk to the older girl again. The tea shop had gone further up in his estimation.

"Been ages, hm?" Shinko had been on his original team, and quit being a ninja after Tenma was killed. He hadn't seen her since, and felt satisfaction that he'd been able to remember her name after all this time. Although, she hadn't changed much. Her brown hair was still short and spiky, and her eyes held a certain mischief to them that made adults wary.

"My family just opened this place," she continued, gesturing around. "They're trainin' me to be the manager someday."

"Good luck to you, then."

Izumi hesitantly watched Itachi speaking so familiarly with the older girl.

Shinko seemed to finally notice her. "Hello, there. It's nice to see another Uchiha out 'n about. I'm Shinko, a former teammate of Itachi's." Balancing her tray with one hand, she held out the other. Her welcoming smile showed off the faint line of freckles across her nose.

The younger girl shook her hand, relaxing now that she understood the situation better.

"Speaking of bein' out 'n about, where's Tsukiko? You and her were always attached at the hip, Itachi."

"She's not feeling well," Itachi replied, his glance at the door the only sign of his agitation. He hadn't used the mirror and instead had turned his head, revealing a lot to Shinko, who was used to reading the feelings of customers. "I'll bring her with me as soon as she is well again. Tsukiko would like to talk to you."

The older girl nodded, her bright green eyes looking at the children in amusement. What could have brought her former teammate away from training? "So? Yer girlfriend?" She asked, setting down the tea and dango. In her mind, that was the only thing that could've separated the duo.

"Friend."

"Oh!" Shinko blinked at the curt reply. "I bet she's all disappointed now!" She grinned, teasing the two. Her smile widened when Izumi jumped in surprise, and she giggled. It was clear what the girl was after, and Shinko couldn't blame her.

But she could still read something in her former teammate, even after he'd put his guard up, and his glances at the mirror she'd put up on the wall told her that he was anxious to leave.

"Heard you and Tsukiko made Chunin," she continued, taking pity on the Uchiha girl. "Nice one."

"Thanks," he said.

Izumi sat quietly, her face to the ground. She'd wanted a chance to be alone with Itachi, to see if he could like her back. But even the older girl could see that Itachi's mind was back with her white-haired friend. Jealousy was not an emotion she enjoyed, but she couldn't help but feel it creep up. That is, until she remembered how sad her friend had been lately. Then all she felt was ashamed.

"Knew I chose right when I quit the ninja." Shinko hugged her tray to her chest. "There was all that with Tenma dyin'. But halfa why I quit was coz of you."

"Me?" Itachi cocked his head slightly.

"Seein' a genius like you so up close, I saw the limits of my talents so clear. Tsukiko was the same, but she had her kekkei genkai. You didn't yet, and you were still miles better than me. I hated it. An' then I got sad, y'know? Started wonderin' if I should really keep at it at all. So the very next day, I went and quit it." She tossed her head back, laughing loudly and delightfully before hearing the voice of her mother calling her back to the kitchen.

"Right, then. Can't be lazing about here. Let me know if you need anything else." She turned and walked away quickly.

An awkward silence settled, and Itachi bit into his dango, unsure how to proceed. Tsukiko would be mad at him if he hurt Izumi's feelings, but he was confused as to why she had asked him to meet with her alone. Was something wrong with Tsukiko that she wanted to discuss?

"You really are amazing, huh, Itachi?" Izumi murmured finally, her gaze still directed at the floor. "I don't have the kind of talent that would make anyone just give up on being a ninja."

The young male continued to eat, trying to figure out from her words why she was upset. Perhaps Izumi was trying to improve and felt lacking? He could understand that feeling.

"But you're going to graduate this year, right?" He encouraged, trying to mimic Shisui's way of gently consoling him when he was upset. Izumi was eleven, so her graduation was a year early. It's not like she hadn't proven herself to be talented.

"That doesn't count as talent, you know," Izumi noted sadly, her hands fisting the material of her shirt. "You and Tsukiko are so good at being shinobi, it makes me want to try harder as well."

For the first time since Izumi had asked him to spend time with her, Itachi felt a faint sense of joy. At least someone was acknowledging Tsukiko as a talent, someone to be admired, rather than as a threat. He suddenly felt a lot warmer towards the Uchiha female.

And Shinko, as well, was proof of their efforts. Their power had removed a ninja from the world, removed all the fights and conflicts she had gotten into. That was proof that they were not on the wrong path.

"I want to ask you something," he said suddenly, setting the now-bare dango stick down.

Izumi lifted her head and looked at him, a thin veil of tears in her eyes.

"Why do you want to be a ninja?"

"What?" She blinked, not expecting that to be the question.

"Being a ninja means actual battle," he explained, trying to use his "Shisui tone" again. "Which means that you'll have to deal with so many awful, terrible things all the time. A girl like you shouldn't have to go through that." Izumi, from what he'd seen, was sweet and timid. The thought of her seriously fighting against anyone was worrisome to him.

"But, I mean, my family are all ninjas, so…"

That was what he had feared. Becoming a shinobi, "just because" would eventually lead to this sweet girl, the only Uchiha to acknowledge Tsukiko, down the same path of the the other Uchiha, where she would become dark, cold, and bloodstained. "Is that the only reason?" he asked sadly.

"It's not just that!" Izumi replied forcefully.

Itachi caught a glimpse of anger in her flat black eyes. He didn't understand what it meant.

"Walking down the same path as the person you like...you're saying I shouldn't want that? Fine!"

She stood up, her fists clenched. "See you," she muttered. Looking back up at him, tears spilled out of her eyes as she forced a smile. "Tell Tsukiko I said thanks." And then she was gone.

Itachi stared after her, wondering what he'd done wrong.

"What's this? Made yer girl cry?" Shinko, who had at some point materialized behind Itachi, spoke in a teasing manner.

"If you can hide your aura that well, maybe you should become a ninja again?" Itachi's voice was curt, annoyed that he hadn't heard her and that he'd done something to hurt Izumi. Tsukiko was going to be mad at him now.

"No thanks!" Shinko laughed, cleaning up the plates. "Poor girl, she just wanted a date with you, but all you can think about is little Tsukiko, right?"

Itachi blinked. "A date?" He cocked his head. "How do you know that? I thought she was going to ask me how she can improve her ninja skills."

Shinko laughed loudly, shaking her head. "You really are somethin', Itachi! Miles ahead of us in skill, but socially, yer way behind!"

The young male's cheeks reddened, but he couldn't necessarily deny her claim. He glared at her, drinking his tea quickly. He wanted to check on Tsukiko.

"Thinkin' about her again?"

Startled, Itachi refocused on Shinko, who was now leaning against the table. "What?"

"It's easy to guess when yer thinkin' about Tsukiko," she explained smugly. "You get this like, almost smile expression. It's pretty cute." The dark-haired woman sighed blissfully, ignoring the embarrassed boy. "It's almost a sure thing that you two are goin' to fall in love and get married someday." She shook her head, smiling. "And look out when you have kids! The Village won't be able to handle that kind of talent."

She looked over to grin at Itachi, but was surprised to see that he was gone, a smile pile of money left to pay for his order.

"Aw, he ran away! And I wanted to tease him more!"

Itachi jumped swiftly from roof to roof, his face burning. Shinko's words had been mortifyingly close to what he sometimes felt about his partner. Love? Of course he loved Tsukiko. Just like he loved his family. But...what she had said about their future…

Unbeknownst to the young male, his lips had lifted into a gentle smile.


	22. Chapter 20

A.N. The main stuff was in the last chapter, but to clarify: Please listen to Haunted! It will really set the tone for this! I'll tell you, the first verse is the past, the second is now, and the third, ?

* * *

NOW:

"Faster, Sasuke!" Tsukiko shouted, slamming her foot into the young male's chest with enough force to knock the wind out of him.

He staggered back, red eyes narrowing with anger as electricity crackled in his fist.

They were in Tsukiko's training grove, near their house. The two had been sparring since early that morning, when the sun had been just a suggestion behind the treetops. True to her word, Tsukiko had not taken it easy on Sasuke, but he hadn't complained once, getting back up every time she flung him across the clearing.

He was covered in bruises, and had a small cut on his arm from when he'd hit a tree earlier instead of Tsukiko. But he was determined, and felt that old thrill he used to have when Tsukiko would show him a new trick when he was little.

And now he still had enough chakra in him to use his chidori a fourth time. Already he was improving.

Still, it was nearing time for her to order a break. Using the Sharingan and chidori together for so long was taking its toll. He was slowing down.

Or so she thought, black eyes focused on his feet as he suddenly shot toward her, chidori screaming. She had had to read the movements of his body, as she was not going to use her Gensogan against him. Not yet.

Tsukiko just barely dodged, backflipping up into the air, the lightning close enough to make her hair stand up as the smell of ozone filled her nose. She twisted midair to kick at the boy's unguarded back.

Sasuke spun around, expecting the movement, and blocked her foot with his arm before throwing her back.

Tsukiko landed lightly, her breathing a little heavier than when they first began. Looking at the mid-morning sky, she guessed that they'd been training for about four hours now, with the young woman slowing herself down considerably and forbidding herself from using her Gensogan. The excuse she gave Sasuke was that this exercise was about building his speed and stamina, and using her Gensogan was a waste of time. So, he knew she was going easy on him, but he had no idea by how much. Still, he had impressed her with that final attack, and she cracked her neck, prepared to step it up a notch.

Suddenly, she heard a noise above her. A messenger bird was flying in a distinct pattern, waiting for permission to land and deliver its message.

"Kakashi?" Sasuke landed next to her, his Sharingan fading away as he glared at the circling creature. "What does he want?"

Tsukiko shrugged. "I guess this is as good a place to stop as any. I promised to meet Masuko at that cute little tea shop soon, and I'd better change clothes." She gestured to her outfit, covered in dirt and even some of her blood.

The boy turned his glare on her. "We aren't finished yet!"

Tsukiko put her hands up in surrender, laughing. "Hey, you were doing great! Look, you definitely landed a couple hits," she gestured to the cuts across her arms, and a nasty bruise on her back, where he'd been able to predict her movements well enough to slam his elbow into her. "You're getting faster."

"And you're still not fighting seriously," he countered, somewhat appeased, but still irritated. Sasuke wasn't stupid. He knew that she was holding back far more than she was letting on. At the same time though, this had been one of the toughest training sessions he'd gone through. And that made him hopeful. Tsukiko was taking him seriously, and he was going to get stronger with her help.

She bumped his shoulder playfully, smiling knowingly. "Ah, but the thing to take away is this: I've been slowly increasing my speed this whole time, and you've kept up, and even surpassed my expectations with that last charge." Her eyes shone with pride. "The gap is getting smaller and smaller all the time, Sasuke. And, you're starting to be able to read my movements. That's no easy feat, considering I have five fighting styles now."

Sasuke's lips quirked upwards, recognizing the truth of her words, but he wasn't distracted. "Do you promise to train later?" He pressed. "I want to fight your Gensogan."

"Want to lose that badly, huh?" Tsukiko grinned, stretching out her sore muscles. Technically, she should still be in bed, as it was only the morning after Lord Third's funeral, but wanted to show Sasuke that she was serious about her offer. She paused to think a moment, watching his expectant face fall, his expressions so minute now that it was hard to read them, as compared to the happy kid he'd been.

"Alright," she agreed, unable to think of a concrete reason why she shouldn't give him an ego check. Getting his ass kicked would have the double effect of showing how much power she could offer him, so long as she paced herself.

The Uchiha boy's eyes widened slightly, and he actually smiled at her, the edges of his mouth just barely curling upward. "Really?"

She shrugged, trying not to show the absurd happiness rising in her chest at that small smile. "Well, you are getting stronger, a lot quicker than I'd expected. I think you can handle it." Pushing her luck, she moved before he could dodge and wrapped her arm around his shoulders to pull him into a hug. "In fact, I know you can handle it."

' _I'll just have to keep myself in control.'_

Sasuke pulled away quickly, his cheeks pink with embarrassment. "Whatever," he muttered, but Tsukiko could tell he was secretly pleased.

"Alright, let's go get cleaned up." The older woman turned away, trusting Sasuke to follow. "It wouldn't be polite to keep your sensei waiting."

"Please, he's going to show up at least an hour late."

Tsukiko laughed, her hair bouncing as her shoulders shook. She hadn't had a day this pleasant in quite awhile, and she was determined that nothing would ruin it.

' _Today's going to be a great day.'_

* * *

Itachi's features were carefully blank as he and the shark-like man he'd been partnered with sat down at the little table, not letting the nostalgia he felt show.

This small tea shop had been a favorite of his, in the center of the village and far from the compound. He and Tsukiko had spent many pleasant afternoons here quietly drinking tea and eating dango, enjoying the small freedom. A former teammate had been the waitress there, and Tsukiko enjoyed talking to her. Itachi less so, but the memories made here were some of his favorites.

Telling himself that he'd naturally gravitated here because of its central position, Itachi carefully placed himself so that his back was to the entrance. From this spot, he was still able to see the front of the shop, reflected in a small decorative mirror hanging on the wall. It had been there ever since the shop first opened, and had actually been the reason he and Tsukiko had always chosen this table. Even then, they'd wanted to be prepared for anything. Over the years, the mirror had been moved up to match their height, and Itachi was sure it had been their friend, though she never mentioned it.

"What can I get for you?" The nervous voice of the waiter pierced his thoughts, instinctively making him lower his head slightly, trusting in the wide brim of his hat to shadow his face. It was someone he had never met, he noted with a faint relief.

"I'll have a three-colored dango and a jasmine tea," he said coldly, his tone cutting down any chance of further conversation.

"Ah, r-right! And you, sir?"

Kisame's wide grin caught the light despite the shadow of his hat. "Just green tea for me."

Somehow, the easygoing manner with which he addressed the waiter made the shaking man more uneasy. "C-Coming right up," he managed, glancing at the massive weapon strapped to Kisame's back.

Even after the man left, the former Mist ninja's grin didn't fade. "So, what's the plan? You know this village better than I do."

Itachi stared at him, face unreadable. What Kisame didn't know was that there wasn't a plan, at least, as far as capturing Naruto went. He was here only to remind Danzo of his promise to protect Sasuke and Tsukiko. Orochimaru's attack had put him on-edge, for several reasons. The first being that a target of his was likely Sasuke.

After having partnered with the serpent-like Sannin member for a short time, Itachi was well-aware of his interest in the Sharingan. After having failed to take his, it was logical to assume that Orochimaru would target Sasuke, like a snake looking for weaker prey.

And that would put him in direct conflict with Tsukiko, whose eyes held further interest. She'd been terrified of Orochimaru as a child, and had never really shaken off her fear of snakes due to his influence. His coming back would bring little joy to her life. Itachi wanted to learn what he could and make sure they were both fine.

But the real reason he needed to come back, had to personally remind Danzo of his promise, was because Itachi had evidence that the old man had actually _helped_ Orochimaru.

Just the thought brought a burning fury to his chest, an anger he hadn't felt in a long time, especially after killing off his emotions. But his source was reliable, and Itachi had already taken steps to ensure that that the Anbu commander was well-aware of his knowledge. That was why, instead of using his Sharingan to erase their presence from the mind of the man guarding the gate, Itachi had simply put him to sleep. He was sure to be discovered quickly, and it would become obvious that someone knew the signs to open the invisible barrier cloaking the village, a jutsu that alerted the higher-ups of suspicious visitors if not properly dispelled.

The signs were changed often, and Itachi only knew them through the efforts of an informant in the village. Orochimaru would only have known them if he'd been able to access Anbu records or had his own spy within the organization. And Danzo was well aware of Kabuto, having investigated the boy thoroughly when he arrived at the village. So that left only one option…

"Here you go." Carefully, their waiter set their order down, flinching slightly as Kisame reached out and lifted his cup, taking an appreciative sip.

"Thanks."

"O-Of course." Clearly eager to get away, the man scurried off to the next table.

Kisame grinned and continued to slowly drink the scalding liquid, patiently waiting for Itachi to answer his question. He was used to his companion's silence by now, and knew no urging (or threatening) on his part would break it.

"We will need to find out whether Naruto Uzumaki is still in the village," Itachi answered finally. They had scouted around the day before, having learned of Lord Third's funeral. "Everyone was recalled from their missions, but he might have been sent out. It is unlikely though. Village officials will want to keep him close and well guarded after an attack like that."

His partner nodded, feeling his blood stir at the prospect of a fight. "Sounds fun."

Itachi picked up his dango, but paused at the sight of familiar spiky silver hair coming into view. Casually, he set the stick down and picked up his tea, taking a sip as he scrutinized his old comrade.

Kakashi leaned against one of the shop pillars, seemingly reading his book. He was waiting for Sasuke, and thought he'd take the boy to lunch before some late-day training. Of course, he wanted to stop by Obito's grave and pay his respects, but he figured the impatient boy wouldn't mind. Tsukiko had been with him all morning, so he probably wouldn't complain. Much.

The jounin had been distracted, however, by two men sitting in the dango shop behind him. They sat facing each other, both wearing black cloaks with red clouds and straw hats to hide their faces, and the one facing him had a large weapon of some kind wrapped in bandages. Definitely suspicious, especially as there had been some trouble at one of the village gates earlier. His intuition said these two were the culprits.

His attention shifted somewhat to the two ninja walking toward him. Kurenai and Asuma.

' _Well, now. That's interesting.'_

"Hey guys," he greeted, closing his book and stepping away from the pillar. "You two seem to be getting along."

Kurenai's cheeks darkened, and she looked away with a derisive snort. "Idiot. Anko just asked me to pick up some dango for her." She held up the package as proof.

"What are you doing here?" Asuma asked curiously, his hands stuck in his pockets. "Aside from catching up on your reading, that is."

"I need to buy something to put on a grave," Kakashi explained, his gaze sliding over to check on the two figures. "Plus I'm meeting somebody here. I'm just waiting on Sasuke."

Unseen by Kakashi, Itachi started slightly, one of his fingers, adorned with a silver and red ring, tapping forward in surprise. He'd known that Kakashi was Sasuke's sensei, but he had hoped to avoid seeing his younger brother, and all the memories that would evoke. The only one he wanted to avoid more was—

"Hey, Kakashi. Asuma, Kurenai. Are we having a party or something?"

Her voice, as clear and unmistakable as he remembered, wiped all other thoughts from the young man's mind. Almost before he could stop himself, he had naturally started to turn to it.

Kisame's head cocked ever so slightly at his partner's reaction, and he unobtrusively shifted his glance to the pretty white-haired girl coming into view. His grin widened.

' _Oh? Interesting…'_

He wasn't the only one who noticed. Kakashi couldn't miss the sudden tension and stiffness in the man's shoulders, and his visible eye narrowed. Jiraiya had warned him about a group of criminals known as the Akatsuki, and these two fit the description. They hadn't seemed familiar, but his intuition was telling him differently, at least with regards to the shorter man. And Jiraiya had mentioned that a certain someone had joined the Akatsuki...

Casually turning to greet Tsukiko, Kakashi felt himself smile in spite of his suspicions. It was nice to see her so carefree, after all the tension she'd been under in the last few weeks. She'd only just begun to recover. Nodding to himself Kakashi decided that she didn't have to get involved in this matter.

"It would seem everyone felt like dango today," the silver-haired man answered pleasantly, watching Tsukiko and her friend approach.

"Well, I promised Masuko I'd show her my favorite restaurant."

Itachi's eyes were locked on the reflection of the white-haired woman, struggling to make out the details with his slightly blurred vision. He didn't have his Sharingan activated at the moment, knowing that the distinctive red pattern would give him away, disguise or not, so he had to make do with his worsening eyesight.

She was taller, and her hair was longer than he remembered. Even from here, he could see the dark circles under her bright onyx eyes, and felt a growing sense of concern. His emotions, so carefully kept in check these last few years, threatened to break free and overwhelm him when she smiled. As much as he'd tried to wish differently, time had done little to dilute his feelings. Seeing her now only confirmed this.

The purple-haired jounin at her side huffed slightly, unimpressed. "A tea shop is your favorite restaurant? Dangos are not a meal."

In his peripheral vision, Itachi saw Kisame stiffen suddenly, a blue hand automatically reaching for the hilt of his weapon as his eyes widened with disbelief. He obviously knew the second woman, which was perhaps something to be concerned about, but at the moment, Itachi couldn't bring himself to care, or look away.

Tsukiko smiled ruefully. "Well, they do have other things," she protested. "They just also happen to have the best dango, aside from my homemade ones of course."

"Of course," Masuko agreed sarcastically, rolling her eyes. "I keep forgetting you're basically still a kid. Honestly, sweets for lunch..."

"But Kakashi, are you waiting for Sasuke here?" Tsukiko asked, pointedly ignoring the older woman. "He was a little annoyed that your hawk interrupted our sparing."

Kakashi sighed. "So he and I are going to be training all afternoon, right?"

She patted his arm sympathetically, smiling with amusement. "He was right behind me, so prepare yourself while you can."

He nodded, resigned.

Itachi's eyes narrowed slightly, watching their interaction carefully. He felt an uncharacteristic stab of irritation, a remnant of years ago, when a younger Tsukiko had admired the silver-haired man.

' _What is their relationship now?'_

"Heh," Asuma smirked. "It's not like you to be waiting on somebody." Then his voice became more serious. "Are you going to visit Obito?"

"Obito?" Kurenai repeated, confused.

"Yeah, kind of," Kakashi said distractedly, moving so that he hid the figures from view. The last thing he wanted was for Tsukiko to take notice.

The girl in question tilted her head at his odd movement, as Kakashi was now blocking the way, but turned at the sound of a new voice.

"Kakashi," Sasuke's tone held mild surprise as he approached, hands in his pockets. "It's not like you to show up early. What gives?"

"Well, sometimes I do," he corrected, his tone dry. He glanced around, unamused with the faces clearly hiding grins.

Tsukiko snorted, trying not to laugh. "Sure you do. Come on, Masuko. Let's get something to eat."

Kakashi stepped out of the way, revealing an empty table with two cups of tea and a plate of uneaten dango.

"Huh, that's weird," Masuko noted, looking around. "Somebody just left their food here."

Kakashi and the other two jounin exchanged glances, the silver-haired man silently communicating with them.

"You mean rude," Tsukiko said indignantly. "These are perfectly good dango." She picked the plate up and sighed. "But also lucky for us, since this is my favorite table. Come on, let's clear these away, and then we can steal it." She looked up at Sasuke. "Do you and Kakashi want to join us?"

The boy frowned, shaking his head. "I'd rather eat somewhere else." His expression darkened slightly. "I don't have much of a sweet tooth."

"Hm." Kakashi cocked his head slightly. "Is that so? It must be hard, living with Tsukiko, then."

She glared at him, her eyes narrowing playfully. "Watch yourself, Kakashi."

Completely unperturbed, Kakashi gave one final look to Kurenai and Asuma, who both nodded, then vanished.

"Is something wrong?" Masuko's quick eyes picked up on the exchange, immediately ready for trouble.

The male waved away her concern. "Just a small errand they agreed to do." He turned his head to Sasuke. "Alright then. You pick where we eat. It's my treat."

The young Uchiha nodded, and began walking down the road, his sensei trailing behind.

Tsukiko watched them go fondly, then turned back to the table. "Alright, let's take the dishes to the front, and we can order." She picked up the dango and the nearly full cup of tea, the enticing smell hitting her nose.

"Mmm," she sighed appreciatively. "Jasmine tea and dango. Whoever was here has good taste."

"Jasmine?" Masuko wrinkled her nose. "Isn't dango usually served with green tea?" She picked up the other cup. "See, green."

The younger woman shrugged. "It's a good combination. I always get it." Lady Mikoto hadn't cared for green tea all that much, so Tsukiko was just used to having jasmine instead. And the smell of jasmine tea and dango brought back fond memories of her younger self, memories that weren't as painful to remember as others.

After taking the dishes to the counter, Masuko sat down with a sigh. "So, how's Sasuke's training coming along?"

"Good," Tsukiko followed Masuko's lead, settling herself with her back to the entrance, eyes glancing up to watch the front through a conveniently placed mirror. She passed a menu to the older woman, already knowing her own order. "He's getting faster and faster. Soon I'll be able to go all out with him."

"Scary thought," Masuko grinned.

After a long pause, and the turn of a menu page, the older woman sighed and leaned forward, closing the small book. "Alright, let's have it. What did you want to talk about?"

Tsukiko hesitated. She was planning to bring this up later, but Masuko wasn't one to beat around the bush. Zero subtlety, that one.

"I was thinking about leaving the village for a short time," she admitted, waiting for the older woman's reaction.

Masuko nodded slowly. "I see. Is this about your family's shrine?"

The white-haired woman glanced around swiftly, making sure that no one was listening to them. "Yes, but there's something else. I've had an Anbu tailing me since the funeral."

To her credit, the older woman gave no reaction, humming boredly and flicking through her menu with one hand. "Are they watching now?"

Tsukiko shook her head. "No. I felt them leave when we got here. But they might be waiting outside."

"And is there a reason the Leaf Anbu are watching you?"

The younger woman snorted. "Try every reason. I've been a thorn in their side for awhile. But I received some intel that the head of the Anbu, Danzo Shimura, is going to try and convince the Council to rescind Lord Third's permission for me to leave."

Masuko's forehead wrinkled with confusion. "Why would this Danzo guy care about that?"

"Can I get you ladies anything?" A timid waiter approached, looking vaguely annoyed and relieved at the same time.

"We're still looking, thanks," Masuko said briskly, gesturing to the menu. "Lots of choices, and it's my first time here. We'll let you know when we're ready."

The man nodded, turning away.

Tsukiko's fake smile fell, and she regarded Masuko seriously. "What I'm about to tell you can't leave this tea shop. If anyone finds out, our lives will both be on the line." She spread her hands out on the table. "You and Kakashi are the only ones I trust with this, but I haven't told him yet. I have steps in place for him to receive a letter should anything happen to me. I understand if you want to leave now."

Masuko raised an eyebrow, then made a show of getting comfy, leaning her cheek against her fist. "Do tell. I'm all ears." Inwardly, she was struck with concern for her friend, but a warmth that Tsukiko trusted her enough to share whatever she'd learned. And before Kakashi!

The white-haired woman felt her lips curve upwards, and she shook her head. "As I expected." She looked at her older friend gratefully. "Well, there's a lot you don't know, so I'll start there. First, I used to be an Anbu member."

Masuko's eyes widened slightly, but she made no move to stop the story.

"I left three years ago, after the almost the entire Uchiha clan was massacred by Itachi Uchiha, and was made a jounin. But Danzo wanted me to stay as his insurance against Itachi." She tapped her temple. "My eyes render most Genjutsu useless, and he wanted that ability. Lord Third overruled him, as the Anbu were technically supposed to report to him. He knew I wanted to leave, wanted nothing more to do with that awful group."

Tsukiko swallowed, twisting her hands. "I was out on a mission for them that night. By the time I returned, the compound was…" she closed her eyes, pausing briefly. "Well, you get the picture. I blamed them for sending me away, for trying to separate me from Itachi. If he and I had remained together on assignments, maybe I would've seen the darkness in him." She shrugged helplessly. "Regardless, I needed to be around for Sasuke, and I didn't want that man anywhere near him. The village wasn't always so kind or admiring of Uchihas, and it would've been all too easy to finish what Itachi started. But ever since then, Danzo's been watching me. I don't think he knows how much intel I've gathered against him, but he suspects something. I've been expecting a kunai between my shoulder blades at any moment."

Masuko's eyes darkened, and she opened her mouth to say something, but the younger girl interrupted, her face transforming into a gentle sort of relaxed.

"Excuse me, but we're ready to order."

Out of the corner of her eye, Tsukiko had noticed their waiter watching them with interest and some confusion. They had been there for a bit without ordering anything, and it would soon be suspicious.

"What can I get you?" the man asked gratefully, spared from the awkward situation of potentially having to tell the two women to leave.

"I'll have a plate of three-colored dango, and a jasmine tea," Tsukiko said, smiling.

"I'll have the onigiri and a green tea," Masuko said, glancing one last time at the menu. Her features were also carefully schooled into a relaxed countenance.

The man taking their order looked at Tsukiko suspiciously. "You're not just gonna leave it lying around, right? The last guy here ordered the same thing, then didn't even eat it. He and his friend skipped out on paying, too."

Tsukiko placed a hand over her heart. "I don't waste good food," she said seriously, ignoring the implication that she wasn't going to pay. She knew that this little place was proud of their dango, and rightly so.

After a moment, he nodded, his expression brightening. "Yeah, you come here a lot, right? Sorry I didn't remember, but I'm pretty new here."

The white-haired woman waved away his apology. "No problem. Thank you!"

The dark-haired man nodded, smiling slightly as he walked away.

She turned back to Masuko, keeping her tone light and her smile in place. "Anyway, I couldn't figure out for the longest time what he was waiting for. Then yesterday, I found out." Tsukiko tapped her vest pocket. "My friend, Eri, used to be an agent tasked with guarding and protecting Lord Third. Her brother, Akio, was one of my comrades in the Anbu. I know I can trust them, especially since Eri cut her ties to the Anbu about a year and a half before I did, and now works as a spy for Jiraiya-Sensei."

It had been a shock to see her at the funeral, but not an unwelcome one. The last time she'd seen the dark-haired woman, she'd been in a lot of pain. Her green eyes had been filled with hatred and anger behind her simple glasses, and Akio had been a worried mess. That was two years ago, when she'd visited Tsukiko in her hospital room and convinced her to cut away from the Anbu, just as she had. Since then, Tsukiko had received the occasional letter, but Jiraiya-Sensei had kept Eri busy. Based on her much calmer appearance, it had done the older woman some good, and for that, Tsukiko was grateful.

Masuko nodded, her false smile widening as she pretended to laugh at a joke. "I noticed that he wasn't at the funeral."

"Jiraiya-Sensei prefers to grieve in his own way, and I respect that. He had Eri steal the scroll with Lord Hokage's approval for my leaving, and gave it to me yesterday. She also hinted that she was onto something about Danzo, but she didn't have enough details to confirm."

"This guy is looking more and more suspicious each day," Masuko said lightly. "But why are you telling me all this?"

Tsukiko hesitated, unsure how her friend would react. "Because I think Danzo is working with Orochimaru."

The purple-haired woman's eyes widened, dropping her act for the moment. "Seriously?"

"There weren't enough Anbu agents around when he attacked, and no sign of any Foundation members. Plus, Orochimaru got in undetected, which is all but impossible without Danzo knowing. He killed a team of Grass ninja within the borders and took their faces, then somehow passed security. Even with Kabuto, it just doesn't add up." Her hand clenched into a fist.

"And, from what Eri has discovered, it looks like he's after the Amaya family secrets. From what she overheard, he wasn't going to stop my leaving, but insist that I take Anbu protection with me." The younger woman snorted. "Which, despite their best efforts, would fail and I'd be dead the moment I gained access to Akihiro's library of information. It would be turned over to the Leaf, where Danzo would have already secreted away anything important. That's why I need to leave sooner rather than later. If there is anything in there about curse marks, I can't risk the possibility of Orochimaru getting his hands on it through Danzo."

She raised her head and looked Masuko. "I know this is asking a lot, but could you keep an eye on Sasuke while I'm gone? Kakashi will take care of him if something happens, but I'll feel better knowing that you're also looking out for him."

Masuko swallowed hard, touched by the trust placed in her. She'd known the young woman for less than a year, but had already been accepted by her. That sort of naivety was foolish, but...after years of not being able to trust anyone, and being betrayed by people she cared about…

' _I want to protect that feeling.'_

"Of course," she managed, trying not to let her younger companion see her emotions. "Anything you need."

Tsukiko smiled, visibly relaxing with relief. "Thank you, Masuko."

They sat in an amiable silence for the next minute or two, broken only when their waiter returned.

"Sorry, ladies. It'll be a few more minutes. We're understaffed today, and a lot of people have come in." He grinned nervously. "Some more savory than others."

"Do you need us to throw someone out?" Masuko asked, looking around at the friendly faces. "I don't mind a quick brawl before I eat."

The younger jounin also glanced around. "Right. I don't want my favorite tea shop to get a bad reputation."

The waiter shook his head, his short brown hair flopping wildly. "No, no! We're okay now. It's just earlier we had some weird guys, and well…" he rubbed his neck. "They creeped me out."

"What guys?" Masuko placed her cheek on her fist, mildly interested and still half-hoping for a fight.

"The ones who were sitting here," he explained. "I couldn't see their faces, but they wore dark clothes and had a scary aura. And one of them had a weird sword."

"Oh?" Now the guy had Masuko's full attention. She was in the market for a new weapon, and felt no guilt over beating up an enemy to get it. "Weird how?"

"Well, it was a huge weapon, all wrapped in bandages," the waiter explained, his annoyance returning. "Obviously we allow people to bring ninja tools in, but this thing was almost as big as me! And the guy wielding it was really scary," he laughed awkwardly. "I mean, I'm used to seeing all sorts of ninja, and I couldn't see anything but his hands, but I swear the guy had blue skin. "

The purple-haired woman shot up from her seat, her eyes wide. "Are you sure? Absolutely sure?"

"Um, yeah, I-I think so," the man stammered, frightened by the sudden intensity. "I wasn't—I wasn't trying to stare, but the sword caught my eye, and when I served their drinks, I saw his hand. It was like a grey-blue color."

"Masuko, what's wrong?" Tsukiko also stood, reaching out to grab her friend's arm. "Do you know that guy?" Her friend was almost vibrating with intensity, and she was glaring down the timid waiter as if daring him to lie to her.

Her mouth stretched into a deadly grin, eyes alight with excitement and anger. "I have a pretty good idea." She looked back at Tsukiko. "Could you do that chakra-dome thing of yours? You'd be looking for a massive chakra, bigger than anything you've ever seen. If it's who I think it is, then chances are, he'll pick a fight sooner or later, and I'd like to be that fight." She clenched and unclenched her fists, shifting from foot to foot.

Mystified, Tsukiko nodded, closing her eyes and pushing out her chakra. Without help, mile in any direction was her limit, but the two men hadn't left that long ago, and likely hadn't gotten too far, unless they were in a big hurry to leave. If so, Masuko could help widen her search by providing chakra.

But almost instantly, she felt five chakras to the north, about three-quarters of a mile away. Kakashi, Kurenai, and Asuma, plus two other chakras.

' _Did Kakashi leave Sasuke?'_ Tsukiko wondered, reaching out for the larger of the two foreign chakras. It was strong, but not the huge power Masuko had predicted. That didn't mean much, as he was likely hiding the majority of it. As for the other...

' _Sasuke?'_ Startled, Tsukiko briefly lost her grip on the dome. When she'd reached for it, it had felt similar to the young Uchiha, filled with Fire and power. But, that was impossible. Sasuke wasn't that strong, and Kakashi wouldn't have exposed the boy to a fight that evidently needed three jounin. Reaching out to the familiar chakra, Tsukiko brushed against it cautiously.

It was warm, and very familiar, again reminding her of Sasuke. But there was definitely something different, something she recognized, despite never having felt his chakra on this intimate sort of level.

Her eyes snapped open with a strangled gasp, her hand grasping her left shoulder tightly as phantom pain spiked through her. "We need to leave, now."

Masuko nodded without a word, unnerved by the look in her friend's eye, and the two disappeared, leaving the poor waiter with a confused and frightened expression.

* * *

 _Tsukiko hopped from roof to roof, irritated that she'd been held-up by one of Danzo's cronies, demanding she write up her mission report as soon as she'd returned. It was long and ultimately boring, and she was exhausted from having to track an enemy ninja, who turned out to be a spy for the Leaf. Utterly pointless. All she wanted now was to eat a quick dinner and go to bed. Of course, Sasuke would likely question her for another hour or so and Itachi…_

 _She blushed, unable to keep the grin off her face at the thought of the handsome Uchiha. Her boyfriend was probably waiting for her, that same grumpy look on his face from the last time work had made her late. They rarely got time together as it is, between missions and the clan watching her and Itachi with thinly-veiled disgust._

' _As soon as we can, we're leaving the compound,' she thought, going over their plans again. 'No one trusts or wants us around since Itachi quit going to the meetings. And hopefully Lady Mikoto will let us take Sasuke, too. She can't want him mixed up in all this growing tension.'_

 _Her smile faded slightly. Things were getting worse and worse in the compound, but she was hopeful. Akio and Eri had been working with Lord Third to create a plan of inclusion to repair relations with the Uchiha clan, starting with the abolishment of a mandatory compound. Once that happened, things would be better._

 _Landing lightly at the compound gate, she was struck by the silence. It was a sudden and full thing, a complete absence of noise, like the whole world was holding its breath. Her instincts flared, and she looked around, uneasy. Even at night, the compound should be filled with the noise of animals, families settling down to sleep, a sentry or two making their rounds, but…nothing._

 _Behind her, she heard approaching footsteps, the only noise in the stillness. Turning, she saw Sasuke running toward her, his school bag bouncing against his side._

" _Tsukiko!" He called happily. "You're home!"_

 _Relieved to see him, the older girl opened her arms and caught him in a hug, grinning. "Hey, Sasuke! You're late too, huh?"_

 _He took a step back, puffing up his chest proudly. "My sensei wanted to show me some advanced shuriken techniques. He said the normal ones were too easy for me."_

" _Of course they are," she agreed, ruffling his hair. "I have some time tomorrow, so we should head to the training grove and you can show me." It had been a while since they'd been able to go, and she was looking forward to it. As far as she knew, Itachi was free as well, and the three of them could have a fun day of training._

 _The younger boy's eyes lit up, and he nodded excitedly. "Yes!"_

 _Smiling, Tsukiko took his hand and turned back to the silent compound, trying to ignore her screaming instincts. It only got worse as she started walking, like icy fingers gripping her spine, trying to pull her back as the oppressive silence weighed her down. Even Sasuke seemed to feel it, slowly trailing off into silence._

 _Tsukiko's eyes turned red, a warning to anyone who knew her, and she pulled Sasuke closer, her gaze sweeping the road ahead._

" _Something's wrong," she murmured, her head turning to look down alleyway. Her voice sounded loud in the quiet compound, and she was struck with the memory of her childhood home, running through an empty village while she screamed for help as her parents were brutally murdered._

" _Tsukiko?" Sasuke had seen the older girl abruptly stiffen, her eyes continuously darting around as if expecting an attack._

" _Come on," she ordered, whispering now. She picked him up, tossing his school bag behind a decorative statue. Racing through the darkened streets, she quickly found her way home, straining her eyes to see any light or movement._

 _She was awarded with a slight flicker in her peripheral vision, a distortion in the air that she couldn't explain, but was gone in an instant. It was somehow familiar, but her mind came up blank. Her body however, remembered what her mind hadn't, and she was struck with an all-consuming need to run, to take Sasuke and raise the alarm._

 _Her shinobi and Anbu training reasserted itself almost instantly, and she knew she needed to know more information before running around like a child afraid of the dark. She needed to go into one of the houses, and see that everything was alright._

" _Sasuke, I want you to stay here," Tsukiko ordered, setting him down near the bushes outside the front porch. "If I don't come out in five minutes, go get help."_

 _The boy's eyes widened, and he nodded mutely, understanding the need for absolute silence._

" _Good," she nodded. "Hide here and wait for me."_

 _Leaving him there, despite her urge to take him and escape, Tsukiko stepped lightly onto the porch and silently opened the sliding door._

 _Creeping inside, she didn't see anything immediately amiss. But she couldn't relax until she'd seen Lord Fugaku and Lady Mikoto._

 _Turning to their room, she paused. The whole house seemed to be holding its breath, and her intuition flared once more. She braced herself, and opened the door._

 _The smell hit her first, the scent of freshly spilled blood hanging in the air, a familiar experience for those who walked the dimly lit path of the Shinobi. But it wasn't supposed to be here, not in her home._

 _From the moonlight streaming through the windows, she could see a figure, his back to her as he looked down at the two corpses that used to be Lady Mikoto and Lord Fugaku._

 _Their bodies lay stretched out, blood flowing still from the horrendous wounds through their hearts where they had been stabbed through. It soaked into the floor, seeking a new host as its previous ones began to stiffen with death._

 _Tsukiko barely managed to contain her gasp, but must have made some noise as the figure turned to her._

 _Her tense body sagged with relief at the sight of familiar red eyes and dark hair. "Itachi," she called softly, her eyes filling with the tears she was desperately trying to hold back. "What happened? Who did this?"_

 _He gave no reply and Tsukiko, thinking that he must be in shock, took a step forward._

 _Something glinted in the moonlight, drawing her eyes to the sword he carried. She recognized it as Itachi's usual weapon, a standard short, hiltless sword used by many Uchiha shinobi. Blood dropped down the weapon, mocking her incredulous gaze._

 _Tsukiko met his eyes, and there was a coldness there, a blankness that made her flinch. She might have been looking at a perfect stranger. 'That's not Itachi,' she thought, realizing that the person before her must be an enemy. Itachi would never look at her that way, would never have—_

 _Something flashed, and the young woman dodged without thinking, the kunai flying past her to hit the wall._

" _Tsukiko." He spoke in Itachi's voice, but there was nothing to tie to her name. No emotion, no memory, nothing but the icy flatness of his eyes. "You shouldn't have come here." His gaze looked past her. "Where's Sasuke?"_

 _Hearing this person say Sasuke's name, as blank and cold as her own, snapped Tsukiko from the fog surrounding her. Her protective instinct surged, and she took another step forward. "I don't know," she said, glaring. "But it doesn't matter, because you won't take another step. Where's Itachi?"_

 _The man's eyes drifted back to her, studying her face. "That's right. You've never seen this side of me, so I really can't blame you for thinking I'm an imposter. However…"_

 _Tsukiko felt the air shift as a Genjutsu was cast. Her eyes widened as the man's Sharingan seemed to spin, weaving a web of chakra around her._

 _That is, until she switched to Earth, and the connection was broken. The point, however, had been made. This man possessed an actual Sharingan, not simply an imitation. And that meant he had to be an Uchiha._

" _What?" The young kunoichi's voice trembled slightly in disbelief. "What—What did you do?"_

 _It was impossible, completely incomprehensible that the man before her was Itachi. That's what her heart said. Her brain however, was doubtful. She had always been able to see through a person disguised as Itachi. Shisui has tried it, various enemies had tried it, but Tsukiko hadn't been fooled. She could always tell the difference._

 _But right now, she could sense no deception. This person was Itachi._

" _I was simply testing the limits of my power," Itachi said, gesturing carelessly to the corpses of his parents._

" _That doesn't make sense!" Tsukiko's voice was a shout now, desperation and anger evident as she tried to understand, to figure a way out of this nightmare. "You already knew you were stronger than them! Why did you have to—"_

" _I had to test a new ability," he interrupted smoothly. "One that I had only recently perfected. I hadn't planned on you being here, Tsukiko, but now that you are, you will provide further proof of my strength."_

 _The young woman was frozen, unable to move as his eyes changed, the black tomoe marks in his Sharingan connecting and growing into a shuriken-like shape._

 _Almost instantly, she felt the Genjutsu, an all-consuming force that made no attempt at subtlety, but overwhelmed her senses._

 _Tsukiko was suddenly standing in a red world, no sign of Itachi or the house she had grown up in. Looking down at her hands, she saw that she was black and white, all the color leached from her skin and clothing. It was as if she had been transported inside the Sharingan itself, into Itachi's world._

 _Angrily wiping black tears away, Tsukiko's Gensogan switched back to Fire, her own red eyes destroying this world._

 _Or so she thought._

 _Her kekkei genkai, which had never failed to break a Genjutsu, was completely ineffective in this place._

 _Looking around with rising panic, Tsukiko felt her eyes flickering rapidly, trying to break Itachi's hold on her mind. She was tempted to start setting this reality on fire, but had no idea if she'd affect the real world. Mindlessly burning herself to death was not what she had in mind._

" _As I expected." Itachi's voice seemed to echo in the red space. "Even the Gensogan is no match for my Tsukuyomi."_

 _She spun trying to see him. "Tsukuyomi?"_

" _An ability of the Mangekyo Sharingan," he supplied, always sounding as if he was right behind her, no matter which way she turned. "I control all of your senses in this world of mine. For example…"_

 _The red landscape changed, and various scenes began to play out. Itachi, ruthlessly killing his clan mates, his sword quickly and effectively ending their lives._

 _Tsukiko stared blankly, unable to process what she was seeing. Then Izumi's scared face appeared._

" _NO!" She jerked her head away, closing her eyes, but the scene was still playing under her eyelids, completely inescapable._

 _When Izumi fell, Tsukiko felt her heart crack in a way that she was sure would never mend. But then Lady Mikoto and Lord Fugaku appeared, his angry voice warning Itachi to stay back._

 _With no hesitation, Itachi speared his father through and turned on his mother. Lady Mikoto was trembling, but made no move to stop her son from ruthlessly stabbing her with his sword. Tsukiko could see the betrayal and pain on her face as the light faded from her eyes._

' _Someone is screaming,' she thought, her mind feeling disconnected. Then she realized that the strangled sobs and pleads for Itachi to stop were coming from her own mouth._

 _With great difficulty, wrapping her arms around herself, Tsukiko stopped herself from breaking down further, panting with strain and fear. "How?" She whispered. "How could you do this?"_

 _The visions flickered and faded, revealing Itachi standing in front of her, cold eyes searing her as she took a step back._

 _Never in her life had she been afraid of Itachi, afraid that he would hurt her or worse. He was her partner, her friend, the person she loved the most. And he had somehow become this warped and evil being without her ever noticing. When had this begun?_

" _The Mangekyo Sharingan is an evolution of powers, and can only be obtained after killing your best friend." He was expressionless, devoid of any emotion, despite the implications of his words. "After that, it became easy to kill."_

 _Tsukiko's eyes widened in realization as a new scene appeared. Shisui, laughing as he sat at their cliff, the place where Itachi had confessed to her, not long before his death. His grin faded as he looked at Itachi questioningly, face going blank as he too was stabbed through. Shisui looked down at the sword protruding from his stomach, then back of to a young Itachi, confusion and pain made all the more heartbreaking as he silently toppled backwards over the cliff and into oblivion._

 _This time, she made no attempt to stop the scream, grasping her head as she tried to purge what she had just witnessed. He really had done it. Itachi had been the one to kill Shisui. And all for some stupid power. And now, everyone Tsukiko had loved was dead._

 _The red world faded, and Tsukiko fell to her knees, sobbing bitterly. Her heart had been shattered by the man she'd entrusted with it, and there was nothing left for her, of her._

 _Itachi took a step toward her, moonlight reflecting in his sword as he raised it._

 _The young woman made no attempt to move, accepting death. It was preferable to living with this hole in her chest, to living without anyone to care about._

 _But Itachi made no move to stab her, watching with cold and empty eyes. Or more accurately, looking past her._

" _Tsukiko? Big brother?"_

 _Her body moved before her mind could catch up, sheer terror and adrenaline fueling her reflexes. One hand shot up to catch the kunai Itachi threw, the blade cutting into her hand. Even more blood dripped onto the wooden floor, but Tsukiko didn't feel the pain as she leapt backwards out of the room._

 _Stomping hard and raising her other hand, a stone wall appeared between her and Itachi, sealing him inside, at least temporarily._

 _Spinning, she crouched down and grasped the frightened boy's shoulders. "Sasuke? Are you alright?"_

 _The young Uchiha was trembling, his black eyes wide with tears. "What—What happened? Mother and father were—Did Itachi—"_

" _You need to run," she said firmly, squeezing his shoulders. "Get out of the compound as fast as you can, and go get help. I'll hold him off as long as I can."_

' _Which, considering I can't beat his Mangekyo Sharingan, won't be very long at all," she thought._

 _Sasuke's eyes widened with fright. "Tsukiko! Behind you!"_

 _The young woman turned just in time to see Itachi coming out of another room, having broken through the flimsier wooden wall instead of the stone._

 _Pain exploded in her shoulder, and she stared dumbly at the kunai sticking out of her chest. He must have thrown it the moment he saw her, and she had turned into it, giving him a better target than her back._

 _Blood poured out of the wound, so close to her heart that Tsukiko couldn't be sure that it hadn't been speared through._

 _Instantly, Itachi was in front of her, and for the briefest of moments, he could've been the man she'd fallen in love with. Horror flashed across his features, but had been swallowed so fast, she couldn't be sure._

 _Desperately trying to stop him, Tsukiko's hands grabbed hold of his shirt, refusing to move. "Go Sasuke!" She shouted, rewarded with the panicked sobs of her younger brother as he ran away._

 _She swayed, unsure if she was holding Itachi back or holding herself up. Her vision blurred, and darkness threatened._

' _I'm dying.'_

 _Itachi's arms wrapped around her, steadying her weakened form. She blinked, and thought, through her fuzzy vision, that he was crying._

 _Then her eyes were filled with red as the Mangekyo Sharingan activated once more. She instantly closed her eyes, but it was already too late. Darkness filled her vision as he forced sleep upon her._

 _Dimly, through the last seconds of consciousness granted to her, she could have sworn she felt a pressure against her lips and heard a whispered. "I'm sorry."_

* * *

Tsukiko's jaw locked angrily as they raced to the location, memories of that night swirling in her mind. She only hoped she wasn't too late.

Masuko jumped alongside her, her own gaze far away. They said nothing, the tension in their bodies steadily mounting as they drew nearer and nearer.

The white-haired woman's mind was racing, trying to figure out why Itachi would return now, of all times. Just when she and Sasuke had reached an agreement, just when it looked like they were going to be okay. Tree branches scratched her cheeks as she raced by, but she didn't care, fueled only by the thought of getting to her destination.

' _There, near the water.'_

Tsukiko and Masuko landed on the path next to a waterway, just behind Asuma. There were two Kakashis, one in front of them, facing a tall man with blue-grey skin and facial features resembling a shark, and the other holding a kunai to the throat of a man with black hair and swirling red eyes.

Itachi Uchiha.

Asuma glanced back at them, shaking his head. "Damn. So much for being subtle."

Tsukiko didn't answer.

Itachi was standing on the water, Kurenai at his feet. At her arrival, Tsukiko felt his attention switch to her, but she determinedly kept her gaze on Kakashi, knowing full well the power of his eyes. He hadn't activated his trump card, so it was safe for her to look at his neck or lower.

Beside her, Masuko stepped forward slightly, a wicked smile spreading. "How rude of you, Asuma, to not invite me to this fight." She turned to the other man. "So. It is you."

"Well, well, what a surprise." The shark-like man hefted his sword, and Tsukiko glanced at him quickly, marking him as Kisame Hoshigaki, an S-Class rogue ninja very high up in the Bingo Books.

"I never thought I'd run into you, Masuko, here of all places." His eyes paused on her arm. "A Leaf ninja now? How'd that happen?" He sounded honestly curious, but there was a mischief to his tone that didn't fool Masuko. She knew he was liable to attack at any second.

She widened her stance, smiling dangerously as her fang glinted. "I'd love to tell you over a drink. How 'bout it Kisame? I'm sure you've got a few stories." Her eyes narrowed. "How about we start with how you stole Samehada?"

The rogue ninja grinned, revealing his own sharpened teeth. "Still on about the sword, huh?" He shook his head. "What a weird day. First I find someone besides Itachi with those crazy eyes, then you show up. Speaking of which—"

Kisame's eyes sharpened as he met the gaze of the Kakashi in front of him. "That's how you copied my jutsu, isn't it? You're Kakashi, the Copy Ninja."

"You can imagine my surprise," Kakashi returned coolly. "I go to check out a couple of lowlife vagabonds in a tea house, and I find none other than Itachi Uchiha, and Kisame Hoshigaki, the scourge of the Hidden Mist Village."

"How about that?" Kisame seemed delighted. "You know my name. I'm honored."

' _He must be the guy Masuko was talking about.'_ Tsukiko narrowed her eyes, watching Itachi's body language for the slightest movement to signal an attack. Her eyes turned gold. ' _What are the odds?'_

"I assume that bizarre excuse for a sword is one of the Seven Ninja Swords of the Mist?" Kakashi inquired.

Masuko stepped past Asuma. "That," she glared. "Is Samehada, and it is one of the most deadly weapons you'll ever see, Kakashi."

He didn't move. "Is it now?"

Kisame chuckled darkly, tightening his grip. "I heard that you and Zabuza had it out a while back."

"Yes." Kakashi's hand grabbed a kunai hidden at his back. "We did."

With an angry growl, Kisame raised his sword, revealing that the wrappings has come undone at the uppermost part. The sword itself resembled a long black bush, but instead of leaves, there were hundreds of blades organized like scales. It's purpose wasn't to slice so much as it was to tear and rip apart.

"Go ahead," he urged, leveling Samehada at Kakashi. "I'd _love_ to cut you to ribbons."

"Kisame. Stop it."

Three words. The first Tsukiko had heard from Itachi in three years. His voice was deeper than she remembered, but had that same calm cadence she'd recognize anywhere. Her fists tightened, and everyone turned their eyes to the Uchiha.

Feeling that he wasn't looking at her, Tsukiko felt it safe to look at his face.

Three years hadn't changed him much. His black hair seemed a little lighter in color, and he'd allowed his bangs to grow out, but that was it. He could've been the same man she'd fallen in love with.

Her heart gave a painful tug as she studied Itachi further. He was wearing a mesh shirt under his red and black cloak, and still wore the necklace Sasuke had gotten for him after they had been accepted to the Anbu, the three tomoe marks mocking her. And his eyes held that same coldness, a distance born on that night. He almost didn't seem real, like a nightmare coming to haunt her with what could of been and how twisted the world was.

"If you take this man on," Itachi continued, his eyes on his partner. "It won't be without cost. Furthermore, it will take time, and the commotion is liable to bring more shinobi running. As it is, there are already several nuisances."

Tsukiko dodged his gaze again, examination over. She watched his body instead, slowly sliding into a defensive crouch.

' _He's just another enemy now. Don't think about who he is. Think about the danger to Sasuke he represents.'_

"Your way is inefficient, and unnecessarily risky. Don't lose sight of our goal."

"Let's hear it," Kakashi ordered. "What is your goal, exactly?" The Shadow Clone next to Asuma vanished.

Slowly, Itachi turned his back to her, facing Kakashi. "We're looking for something, and we know it's here."

"And what would that be?"

Itachi didn't answer, and Kakashi raised a kunai threateningly. "What is this thing you're looking for?"

"My way is more...efficient than Kisame's." Shuriken appeared in his hand, a distraction from the real threat.

Tsukiko's eyes turned blue, and she leapt forward.

"Ninja Art: Water Wall!" Kakashi, having seen through the attack, quickly activated his hand signs.

"Haaah!" As soon as Tsukiko landed, she raised her arms and pulled the water, which had erupted into deadly spinning columns directed at Kakashi, to the side.

"You're good." Itachi still didn't look back, likely having expected her to jump forward. Instead, he focused on Kakashi. "You almost anticipated my moves."

A Shadow Clone appeared behind Kakashi, stabbing him in the back. "Almost."

Tsukiko didn't move, having realized that Kakashi had already substituted with a Water Clone. She could feel the water taking his shape. Her eyes watched Itachi with a hawklike perception.

' _No. That's not a Clone.'_

Kakashi's Clone turned back to water, and Masuko growled. "There sure are a lot of my Water jutsus being thrown around today!" The few times she and Kakashi has sparred, the older woman had been irritated to see the silver-haired man wielding several of the Mist's signature Water attacks. And Kakashi being...Kakashi, had made it a point to copy several more of her techniques.

She kept her eye on Kisame, who seemed content to watch his partner fight. Masuko raised an eyebrow. "Since when are you the 'wait and see' type?"

The easy grin he shot her made her heart flutter as he rolled his shoulders. "Itachi's the plan guy. I'm just following orders."

It was hard not to return the smile, and Masuko realized that it would be all too easy to fall back into old patterns and get caught up in fighting. She would have to be careful; the village was already half-destroyed. An all or nothing battle was not ideal, no matter how much she _really_ wanted it.

Back on the water, Kurenai grabbed a kunai and charged at the closest Itachi. "Nice job, Kakashi!"

Tsukiko jumped back, aiming a blast of fire at the Itachi further away.

"Get back, Kurenai!" Kakashi leapt out of the water, slamming into her. "That one's the Shadow Clone!"

Tsukiko's fire hit a wall of water as an explosion propelled Kakashi and Kurenai forward, Asuma jumping to catch them while Masuko played defense, making sure Kisame didn't move.

All four landed lightly on the water, droplets cascading down like rain. Kurenai and Asuma faced Kakashi, who had his back to Itachi. Tsukiko landed next to the silver-haired jounin, her eyes never leaving the Uchiha male. In turn, she felt his attention refocus on her. She'd also changed. She wasn't the helpless little girl she'd been that night. This time, she was going to stand her ground.

"Stay on your toes," Kakashi ordered gruffly, sounding slightly strained. "This guy was made a chief of Anbu Black Ops when he was only thirteen."

"Alright, he's tough," Asuma snapped. "We get it."

"Tough?" Kakashi repeated incredulously. "You haven't seen half of what he can do." He faced his foe.

"For someone who is not of the Uchiha clan, you have mastered the Sharingan well." Again, Tsukiko felt Itachi's gaze leave her. "However, not being one of us, you lack our physical strength. And that's something you can't copy."

Kakashi said nothing, but Tsukiko knew the truth. The jounin was nearing his limit, and quickly.

"Why is it that the Uchiha clan is known by all, and feared by all?" Itachi's simple question held a powerful threat. "I'll show you what the Sharingan can do when its wielded by a true heir of the bloodline."

A shiver of fear snaked down her spine, and her shoulder ached at the memory.

"Close your eyes, now!" Tsukiko took a step forward, her own eyes snapping shut. "Don't look at him at all!" A normal Sharingan could be dodged by avoiding eye contact. This wasn't the same. The Mangekyo Sharingan could catch an opponent in one one-thousandth of a second, making dodging it at high speeds nearly impossible.

"Tsukiko!" She felt Kakashi's hand on her shoulder. "You can't fight him! If you open your eyes, you're as good as dead. I have a Sharingan. I can match him."

The young woman said nothing, allowing Kakashi to step in front of her. "Listen, all of you." The older ninja sounded slightly panicked. "Whatever happens, don't look. I'll have to do this alone. My Sharingan against his."

She was barely listening, gathering her chakra. This was something she'd trained for, a strategy she'd developed for three years now. The time had come to test her own abilities against Itachi.

' _This time, I'll use_ you _to measure_ my _capacity.'_

"Indeed, your abilities are impressive," Itachi said. "They might even be enough to resist the Mangekyo Sharingan. However, there is something they can't defend against. This special Sharingan jutsu—Tsukuyomi."

Just the name was enough to send Tsukiko's mind splintering back to that night, when Itachi had used that same power on her. This was no idle threat.

"Only someone with the Sharingan _and_ kekkei genkai can defeat me."

Over on the land, Masuko's eyes never diverted from Kisame, who was watching Itachi. She remained crouched, looking for an opportunity to attack. But, despite Kisame's distraction, he had no openings. Without a strong sword to keep Samehada at a distance, and to counter-attack, it would be a very difficult fight. Not impossible, but difficult. With backup, she could probably win, but…

' _Yeah, like I'm going to let someone interrupt this fight?'_ She smirked, and her hand drifted to the crappy Sound sword strapped to her waist. The damn thing would probably snap after a single clash with Samehada, but it would get her close enough.

Tsukiko concentrated, her eyes turning gold and blue behind her eyelids. She hadn't counted on them standing on the water, so her technique was going to have to change. But, water conducted vibrations far easier than earth, so it should only take her a moment to adjust. Same theory, different practice.

Experimentally, she tapped the water with her foot, following the ripples. Tsukiko's mind was suddenly filled with a rough outline of her friends, the wind currents adding more details. Between that and her ability to sense chakras, she had a clear picture of both her allies and enemies. With this technique, she could fight blind. She was ready.

As she'd suspected, Kakashi couldn't hold on for long. A moment later, his breathing grew heavy, and he fell to his knees.

"Kakashi!" Kurenai reached for him. "What is it? Can we open our eyes now?"

"No," he gasped, his voice pained. "Not yet."

"What just happened?!" Asuma demanded. "One second the guy's talking, and the next second you hit the ground!"

Kakashi moved to stand, but Tsukiko moved in front of him. "My turn."

"Tsukiko, you can't! If you look for even a second—"

"Kakashi." Tsukiko's voice was cold, letting him know that she was furious with him. "Who do you think you're talking to?" She readied her stance, reading the wind currents and water vibrations at the same time. "I don't need to see in order to fight him."

"Tsukiko." Itachi was careful to control his tone, to keep the cold politeness he'd cultivated the last three years. "I hadn't planned on fighting you today."

It was the very thing he'd dreaded the most, seeing her hatred of him. His heart clenched painfully.

"No, I'll bet you didn't," she said, smiling bitterly. "After all, this wound," she tapped her shoulder. "Should have killed me, right?

Itachi very nearly flinched at that.

"What a nuisance it must be," she continued. "To run into someone who knows your fighting style, through and through!"

She leapt forward, and Itachi's eyes instinctively tracked her movements, seeing the shuriken that appeared in her hand.

He jumped up to avoid the projectiles, but she was waiting for that, a shadow clone appearing above him. The clone's eyes were closed as well, but evidently knew where to aim. Electricity danced in her palm and arched toward him.

The Itachi it hit vanished in a puff of smoke. Another clone.

But Tsukiko was already moving, having realized that. She spun around behind her to kick the real Itachi, who was desperately trying to think of a way to end this fight without hurting her.

Kisame was watching him closely, already too curious about his past. And the man could sense deception with frightening accuracy. That's why he had to subdue Kakashi in such a ruthless manner. He'd held back, though, knowing the man's will was strong.

Kakashi's mind wasn't broken, and he could blame it on his having a Sharingan. Tsukiko, however, presented a very real problem. She knew his fighting style just as he knew hers, and whatever technique she was using now was working. Tsukiko was somehow able to see him without the use of her eyes, meaning he couldn't catch her in a Genjutsu and knock her out.

He caught her foot and tossed her backwards, but she flipped and landed lightly, her clone next to her.

"So you can control lighting now. Impressive." His eyes tried to pierce through her closed lids, silently praying that she'd make a mistake. It was a fool's hope, he knew, based on how many times she'd fought against the Sharingan.

"Though, you are only using a clone to wield it," Itachi continued, seeking some insight into this new ability. When had her eyes evolved? He had a sickening feeling that it was his fault, due to the pain he'd caused her that she was granted these powers. "What then, are you doing that allows you to see me so clearly?"

Tsukiko didn't answer, charging forward again.

Itachi's eyes saw another movement, anger sparking through his wall of dulled emotions as Kisame swung that monstrous sword at her unprotected back. Her clone took the blow and vanished with a puff of smoke, but his partner was already swinging again.

"Oh, no you don't!" The purple-haired woman he'd seen earlier blocked Samehada with a small sword, an impressive feat. Even more interesting was her blue armor, made entirely out of physical chakra. It looked startlingly like his Susanoo, and Itachi made a mental note to ask Kisame about it later.

"Kisame." Itachi's voice showed a slight irritation, and not the anger coursing through his system. "What are you doing?"

"Seemed like your way was taking too long," the shark-like man grinned. He nodded to Kakashi. "After all that, the fool's spirit is still intact. Meanwhile, you've risked overusing those eyes of yours. You know that's dangerous. And to top it off, that girl is matching your movements beat for beat." Kisame frowned at him.

Tsukiko ignored the way her heart pounded with excitement, stupidly happy got be so close to the man she loved. And she shot down the concern that arose when the Mist rogue mentioned his eyes.

' _This isn't my Itachi,'_ she reminded herself biting her lip hard enough to draw blood. She needed to focus. If she won here, Sasuke would finally be free….But wait...

"This thing you've come for...is it Sasuke?" The venom in her voice was practically tangible. ' _No one is laying a finger on him!'_ When it came to Sasuke, all bets were off.

"No." Itachi's voice was final.

Her brow furrowed as she read the vibrations around him.

There was something...off. An almost imperceptible trembling in his body, so faint that it wasn't even making ripples.

' _Is...Is he hurt? Or is he nearing his limit?'_ Kisame has said something about overusing his eyes. How much chakra was Itachi giving up every time he used the Mangekyo Sharingan?

Her traitorous limbs wanted her to move, to see if he was okay, and her eyes began to burn, tears of frustration with her feelings and anger at the man in front of her trying to fall past her closed lids.

"So what is it you came back for?" There was a strain to her voice, the only sign of her inner conflict.

' _Certainly not for you,'_ her brain tried to convince her heart. ' _He'd hoped I was dead, remember?'_

"The legacy of the Fourth Hokage." He offered, knowing that she'd understand and take precautions. Naruto would have to be carefully protected from the other Akatsuki members if their plans were to be thwarted.

' _Legacy?'_ There were numerous things Lord Fourth had left behind in the wake of his death, and his legacy could be anything from the jutsus he'd created to the laws he'd passed. But...there was only one thing she could think of as being useful to Itachi.

' _Naruto…'_

Gaara's recent destruction had shown the power of the one-tailed beast. Naruto had the Nine-Tails, a creature that could be controlled by the Sharingan, especially one as powerful as Itachi's.

"I see." Her voice grew colder, if possible. ' _So, he's going to do exactly the thing that first tainted the Uchiha name and bred all the distrust and violence?'_ That admission felt like a slap to the face, and was enough to force her feelings down for now.

"The Nine-Tailed spirit inside Naruto? That's what you're after?" Kakashi's breathing was still shaky, and he was clearly in a lot of pain, though it wasn't technically physical. "You're not the only ones, are you? There are seven more of you out there, searching. Hunting. I know all about you."

Tsukiko tried to dispel a mounting anger and hurt feeling that was growing with each word Kakashi said. So, he'd known something this whole time about Itachi and his whereabouts, and never saw fit to share? Even though she'd been specifically training Sasuke to fight him? Even though any day, Sasuke could give into his need for revenge and disappear?

' _Why is it,'_ she thought, trying to clear the red-tinged fog in her mind. ' _That I am never confided in until it's too late?'_ Suddenly her decision to leave Kakashi in the dark about Danzo seemed more fitting.

The older jounin continued, much to her displeasure. "You call yourselves the Akatsuki, right?"

Itachi's body gave a small twitch, and Kisame looked up from the staring match he'd been having with Masuko, whose armor now showed several worn places, despite them not actually trading very many blows.

"Akatsuki?" Asuma repeated.

"Kisame, we'll take Kakashi with us." Itachi's tone was glacial. "But we don't need the others. Get rid of them." Inwardly, he cursed the silver-haired man for forcing his hand. The Itachi of the Akatsuki, the evil shinobi who slaughtered his own clan for power, would never let someone who knew vital information escape.

A small part of him, however, was angry at Kakashi for a different reason. Seeing him step forward to protect Tsukiko earlier, trying to make himself the most immediate target, had brought back memories of when that was his job, when he and Tsukiko had been a team.

Jealousy for the older man exploded in his chest, a completely illogical, negative emotion that he had no control over. Kakashi, one of the only shinobi Itachi respected and truly admired, had taken his place. He was Sasuke's mentor, Tsukiko's friend, and he was now the only skilled Sharingan user the Leaf possessed. Kakashi was living a life that could've been his, and Itachi was torn between feeling grateful that someone he trusted was taking care of his family, and feeling like he'd gone too easy on the silver-haired man earlier.

At Itachi's order, the shark-like man was instantly racing toward Kakashi, but found himself interrupted as Masuko's armored foot slammed into his side, knocking him away.

"Yeah, about that…" Masuko cracked her knuckles, glowering. "See, I've been dying to give Kisame a piece of my mind, so your plan doesn't really work for me."

Itachi narrowed his eyes, and Tsukiko jumped between him and Masuko, pulling up a massive wall of water behind her. "You handle Kisame, Masuko," she ordered. "Don't even think about looking at Itachi."

"Roger," she heard Masuko growl. "Don't worry about me. I only have eyes for this guy."

Kisame chuckled, rising to his feet. While also knowing that Itachi was right about not getting into a full-on battle so close to the Leaf, the sight of Masuko grinning at him, daring him to strike, got his blood racing. "You're actually going to fight me without a proper sword? Where's Tatsumaki?"

"It broke," she said shortly, rolling her shoulders and replenishing her armor. "When the Mist Anbu tried to assassinate me after Zabuza left."

"What?" Kisame's voice lowered, his grin fading. "The Mist tried to kill you?"

"Yup." Masuko popped her "p," and shook her head. Then, without warning, she charged, her sword glowing with energy.

Kisame blocked, pushing her back, and they clashed again and again, completely blind to the other three jounin.

On the other side of the wall, Tsukiko's breath was slightly uneven, the strain of her Gensogan growing stronger as time went on. But there was no choice; without her kekkei genkai, she'd lose against him in an instant. With the Mangekyo Sharingan activated, Itachi didn't need direct eye contact to catch an opponent off-guard. Just looking in his direction was enough to get trapped.

"So you're using Water," Itachi observed, his voice calculating. Secretly, he was relieved Tsukiko had managed to separate them. It was getting harder and harder to hold his persona in place. "But you read my movements in the air as well. Are you switching elements mid-battle?"

"Attack me and find out," Tsukiko challenged, throwing shuriken.

He dodged easily, then blocked her punch with his arm, finding himself face to face with her.

Tsukiko was so close to him now, her senses choosing that moment to remind her of how attracted she was to him. Too close, her body almost touching his. And, with the water blocking them from view, they were effectively alone.

"Why did you leave?" The words slipped out before she could stop them, harsh and demanding, soft and pleading. "Why did you kill everyone, destroying everything we'd been working for? What about peace, Itachi? What about becoming Hokage?"

Her words took him completely by surprise. She tossed his dreams at him like daggers, each of them hitting home. But she left one unsaid, the one thing he would give anything to accomplish.

' _What about the life we wanted together?'_

He should have been the head of his clan, should have married her. Being the Hokage didn't matter now, wasn't the secret wish he held in his heart every time he saw the full moon. She was.

Tsukiko wished she could open her eyes. The trembling had returned. He forced her back quickly, likely feeling the cost of his own visual jutsu. When he spoke, however, there was no hint of him being in anything less than perfect control. Of course.

"I simply realized that the only way to attain peace was to eliminate all ninja." A pause. "Including you. It was unfortunate that you survived, Tsukiko. It would've been better for you to die peacefully."

Her breath caught as if she'd been punched in the gut. Desperately, she tried again.

"The Itachi I knew would never have done this. _You_ wouldn't have done this. There were so many secrets, Itachi, so many things I knew you were keeping from me." It had taken her months to realize, to remember the things that didn't add up. He should have killed her that night, but he'd only knocked her unconscious, leaving her on her back where the blood couldn't flow out of her as easily. And he never hurt Sasuke, didn't even try to kill him. Maybe he had changed, maybe there was darkness in his heart. But now, seeing him again, Tsukiko allowed herself a tiny sliver of hope. She took a step forward, wishing she could see his expression. "Even after everything, I still lo—"

"The man you loved was an illusion," he interrupted, almost bored. "I didn't need you anymore, so I dropped the charade. You should be smart enough to realize that."

' _Stop, Tsukiko,'_ he pleaded, very nearly breaking at the heartbreak on her features. ' _Don't make me say any more.'_

She swallowed hard, a tear escaping her closed eyelids and trailing silently down her cheek. "I know."

The water underneath Itachi exploded, shards of icy daggers aiming for his exposed back. They slammed into him, ripping through his body.

Countless crows flew out of the fake Itachi, and Tsukiko had to leap back, unable to keep track of that many creatures. She couldn't "see" that well.

The sharp point of a kunai gently touched her spine, and Tsukiko straightened, aware that this could be the moment of her demise unless she acted with extreme care.

"You should give up on me, Tsukiko." Itachi's voice was low in her ear, not quite as cold as before. "I'm not someone that can be saved."

Her confession had snapped his resolve, and he cursed himself, Danzo, and this entire twisted world that he had been granted someone who loved him as Tsukiko did, but placed him in a situation where he was continually forced to hurt her. Itachi kept the kunai steady as he whispered to her, trying to convince her that he wasn't worth this pain. She deserved to be happy.

' _Love turns us all into fools.'_ He thought, not realizing that Tsukiko was thinking almost the exact same thing.

"The only way you'll get me to give up on you is if you kill me," she said quietly, a gentle sigh leaving her body. This truth had been haunting her for three years, a shadow over her mind and loyalty to the Leaf. "I know I'm a stupid girl, and a horrible ninja for allowing my emotions to rule me, but when it comes to you, Itachi, my logic seems to disappear."

The hand holding the kunai to her back pulled away slightly, shaking. He couldn't listen to her anymore. He needed to leave, now, before he destroyed everything. Any longer, and he would throw everything away to hold her close and comfort her.

"No!" Somehow, she knew, as she always seemed to, that this was a critical moment for the both of them. Turning to face him, Tsukiko made a split-second decision, knowing that she would either die, or be given something to cling to.

She switched her Gensogan to just water, and she opened her eyes.

Itachi wasn't using the Mangekyo Sharingan, but he still had the normal version activated, and should have used the moment their eyes met to attack with some creeping Genjutsu. Instead, he did nothing, his face impassive. But the faint tremble in his limbs gave him away. So minute that most wouldn't notice, but Tsukiko had spent almost her whole life with him. In a way, her eyes were just as perceptive as his.

She caught his hand in both of hers, and placed the tip of the kunai against her chest. Though she had not intentions of dying here, she wasn't really thinking things through. All she wanted were answers.

"Why can't I be free of you?" She asked, her eyes filling with emotion. "And how is it you were able to cut your ties to me completely? You say that everything was a lie, but I know that's not true. Those moments we spent together on the cliff weren't fake, Itachi." Her grip on his hands tightened, and she looked directly at him, blue meeting red. "So please, tell me the truth. Or give me a reason to hate you. Give me a reason to believe that you would have killed everyone we loved simply for your own gain, that you truly meant to kill me that night."

He said nothing, but his jaw tightened, and there was a flicker of misery in those red orbs of his.

"Itachi." His name was a whisper, a prayer for answers. Hesitantly, she moved one of her trembling hands, and gently brushed his hair back from his face, something she'd done a thousand times before. Her hand lingered against his cheek, forcing his eyes to stay focused on her.

A quiet sigh left him, and he lowered the kunai, a weariness seemingly taking hold. Itachi was utterly broken, defeated by this woman. His eyes closed briefly at her touch, and when they opened, there was an anguish there, an agony she'd never hoped to see on anyone's face.

"Tsukiko." Her name on his lips finally sounded right, filled with all their memories, experiences, and emotions.

Itachi studied her face, his Sharingan allowing him to see her fairly clearly. Those eyes he loved were still filled with stars, and she was smiling at him, like no time had passed. Hatred for what he was doing threatened to overwhelm him, but he selfishly leaned into her hand, the first affection he'd had in three years. His eyes drifted to her mouth, and he almost couldn't stop himself from leaning closer, even as he knew he would hate himself later.

Heart pounding, Tsukiko watched him move closer, seeing that, no matter how pained, the man she loved had resurfaced. "Please," she managed to say, tears trailing down her face. "Tell me the truth."

"Tsukiko, I—"

"Severe Leaf Hurricane!"

At the sudden shout, the two jumped away from each other, Itachi's walls slamming back into place so forcefully that Tsukiko felt like she'd been struck.

Guy, having somehow found out about their predicament, had hurried to the scene as fast as he could. Upon arrival, the first thing he saw was the massive wall of water in the middle of the battlefield. And right in front of it was Kakashi, obviously hurt. Kurenai and Asuma were supporting him, backing away from the shark-like man swinging a massive sword over their heads. The only thing keeping him back was Masuko, one hand bulging with the dense chakra of her armor. She caught the sword with her hand, wincing as a few of the scales shallowly sliced her. With the other hand, she wielded a broken short sword, trying to be fast enough to slice Kisame open.

But he was faster, and yanked his sword back, Masuko's chakra looking severely diminished.

Bravely, she grinned and crouched to jump back into the fight. That was when Guy made his move. Clearly she was exhausted and needed his help.

"Severe Leaf Hurricane!"

His knee slammed into the man's side sending him flying into the flowing wall of water.

Tsukiko landed lightly as Kisame came flying through her barrier, letting the water fall as the Mist Rogue landed next to a bored-looking Itachi.

She couldn't breathe, her chest tight. He'd been about to tell her, been about to answer every lingering doubt she'd had from that night. And even if he had shoved that kunai through her heart and killed her, she would have at least known that Itachi was truly gone. Now, she was just left with uncertainty. Her heart wanted to believe that there was more to the story, but her brain was already analyzing how easy it would have been for him to kill her just now, finishing what he'd started three years ago.

She glared at Guy as he landed with a huge splash next to an enraged Masuko. ' _I'm going to kill him.'_

"Well who do we have here?" Kisame growled irritably, baring his teeth.

"The Leaf Village's fiercest beast of battle," the black-haired jounin said confidently. "I'm Might Guy!" He smiled, his teeth sparkling in that way they always seemed to when he introduced himself.

"What are you doing?!" Masuko's eyes were narrowed with rage, and her fists were clenched. "How dare you interrupt my fight?!"

"You're Might Guy, huh?" Kisame straightened, just as annoyed that his first sparring session with Masuko in years had been ended prematurely. "Mighty stupid-looking Guy."

"Don't underestimate him," Itachi said coolly, his guard fully restored after the near-disaster Tsukiko had caused. He needed to leave now, before Kisame realized something was wrong or before Tsukiko got the idea to resume her interrogation.

The white-haired woman appeared next to Guy, cursing his awful timing, but also thinking of his use. He had experience fighting the Sharingan. With him around, maybe they could capture Itachi.

"Is Kakashi alright?" She asked. Asuma and Kurenai had shut their eyes again after the water wall had fallen, but they were still holding up their now-unconscious friend.

Guy frowned, taking in the state of his old rival. "What they must have put him through," he growled.

Asuma shifted his weight, mindful of Kakashi. "Close your eyes, don't look at Itachi," he warned. "You'll get caught in his jutsu. Tsukiko's the only one who had been able to engage."

"Relax," Guy replied confidently. "I know what I'm doing. After spending this much time training to fight Kakashi, I know all about the Sharingan." He looked at Tsukiko over his shoulder. "No surprise you can hold him off. That's good. You're the best person we could've hoped to have in this situation."

Turning his head, he glanced at the infuriated Masuko. "And you have that Mist Rogue figured out, so between all five of us, we should be able to capture them."

Tsukiko nodded, falling into the chain of command. Guy was older and more experienced than her, sizing up the situation nicely in a matter of moments.

"Alright, Kurenai, Asuma, open your eyes, now."

Kurenai furrowed her brow. "But, if we—"

"Don't worry, just don't look in his eyes," Guy explained. "That's the key to fighting an opponent who's using Sharingan. Focus on his feet. You can read what he's gonna do from them."

"Alright, but that trick sounds a lot easier said than done." Kurenai opened her eyes slowly, keeping her head down.

"We haven't had all your training," Asuma added. "We're not you, Guy." But he too, opened his eyes.

"True," the dark-haired jounin cracked his neck. "It takes skill to anticipate an opponent's moves merely from watching his feet, but I don't have time to teach you now. You'll just have to do your best."

"Itachi's Sharingan is incredibly fast," Tsukiko added. "Guy and I should engage, while you two call for reinforcements."

"A sound plan," Guy nodded. "But I'll make a small change. Kurenai, get Kakashi to the Medical Corps. Asuma, you'll be Masuko's backup against that Mist Rogue."

"Got it," the other man replied, sizing up his opponent.

Masuko nodded reluctantly, forcing her own desires aside. This was more important than her feelings and issues.

"Tsukiko, I'll be your backup," Guy continued, glancing back at her. "You keep him busy and I'll find an opening. I already sent word for the Anbu Black Ops, but until they get here, we hold them off." He raised his hands in preparation to attack.

"Interesting," Kisame growled, his smile menacing. "I'll give you credit for guts." He gripped the jolt of his sword tightly.

"No, Kisame," Itachi ordered, his voice bored again. "We're pulling out."

At the incredulous look from his partner, Itachi pushed forward, avoiding looking at Tsukiko. "We're not here to fight a full-scale battle. Tempting as it may be, it's not the way to do this. Let's go."

Kisame paused for a long moment, but let it go. Seeing Masuko again had been a shock, and a blow to his own resolve. For the first time in a while, he found himself questioning what he was doing.

"That's too bad," he finally said. "It was just getting fun." He shot one last look at the silver-haired man who'd killed Zabuza, his smile fading into a growl. "They don't know how lucky they are."

Tsukiko saw the familiar flicker of chakra at their feet and leapt forward.

"Itachi, stop!"

She was too late. Using Body Flicker, the two had vanished without a trace.

Tsukiko looked around helplessly, all of her fears and insecurities rushing forward.

"Damn it!" She shouted, punching the air with her fist.

A massive wave of water followed the movement, slamming into the bank with a satisfying impact, but it did little to ease the pain and tension in her heart. Itachi had shown up to threaten her new life, confuse her heart, and worst of all, he'd planted a seed of hope within her. A hope that there was more than what she had been told.

One thing was for sure. He wasn't getting away that easily.

"Naruto." Her whisper was filled with deadly promise. "He won't get near you, or the Nine-Tails. I'm coming to help you."

* * *

A.N. There we go! That was the result of several rewrites and clashing ideas. In the end, I like it, and I hope you guys do too. This confrontation isn't over, not by a long shot. I'll have the next chapter up in two weeks or so, so look forward to that!

Side note: I had to close a plot-hole here that has always driven me nuts. We learn about the village barrier with the Pein attack, and he makes some comment about how Itachi knew the signs blah, blah. But WHY WOULD THEY KEEP THE SIGNS THE SAME IF AT LEAST ONE MAJOR THREAT KNEW THEM?! Idiots! Anyway, I fixed it. *smiles*

Please let me know what you think, and thanks for reading!


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